Run!
by Sho-A0YCupid
Summary: Luffy loves the sensation of jumping the tallest buildings of Raftel, but when looking for a partner to be by his side, he gets the jackpot! Zoro is an abandoned project who is fortunate enough to be chosen. What could go wrong? ZoLu and possible others.
1. Dropped In at a Good Moment

Okay... I really need some kind of cure or medication for these ideas to stop coming to me!

Sanji: Do no worry Cupid-swan, you're ideas are wonderous and unique.

... Sanji... How did you get here?

Sanji: The front door was busted open.

(sighs and shakes her head) I swear I need a metal door if it keeps getting busted open.

Sanji: I'll have Franky know that.

Not now, we have to introduce my lastest new idea that wouldn't leave me alone until I put it down and wanted to show it.

Sanji: 'We', Cupid-swan?

Yes, since you're here, you may as well be my new co-host for this fic.

Sanji: Oh! I'm so honored to be your co-host for this wonderful fic! (does his bliss dance)

... Don't do that please...

Sanji: Hai!

... Enjoy everyone.

* * *

Chapter 1: Dropped In at a Good Moment

#-+-#

Raftel was the biggest city in all of Grand Line. The sky scrapers seemed to really look as though they could kiss the clouds on a good day while the streets below have to manage in these buildings' shadows. The buildings were clean and range in heights, but still the same plummeting height that no sane human being would be able to scale across.

But then… there's always those brave, daring, and stupid enough to pull it off.

-XxX-

The door to the roof platform swung open and a young man of seventeen ran out. He panted as he looked around the area before seeing a board that pointed to another building, which was far if he jumped, but there were pipes on it which he can grab and climb up to.

"Hurry up!"

He heard some one call as he ran to the board, jumped and grabbed the pipe. He sighed as he looked down to see that he was a good forty to fifty stories high before he climbed up the pipe as quickly as a monkey as bullets missed him and got up to the roof. From there he started to run, jumping over vents and looking around before seeing a cable leading to another building not too far, but too far to jump. He grabbed the cable with his gloved hands as he practically flew down to the building with a rolled landing before quickly getting up.

"Luffy? Are you okay?" Said a man through his ear piece.

"I'm fine Shanks." The young man known as Luffy said.

Luffy is a lanky young man that still built athletically, messy ebony hair, bright brown eyes that even sparkle with some of the blue specks in around the iris. He has a scar under his left eye and a smile that went from ear to ear.

He was wearing a tight white tank with a slightly loose red tank, shorts that were slightly loose around the legs, but only a little pass the knees, and sandals that had an extra string that wraps around the ankle, so that it wouldn't slip off. The choice of shoes was unusual for a runner, but everything else was exactly what's needed to for this certain person.

"Jeeze Anchor, you gave me a scare there when the sirens went off."

"Not my fault, the stupid instructions Nami gave me to break the code to the jewelry safe and get the All Blue diamond."

"Did you get that?"

"Yeah, right here." He patted his pocket, which bludged out, showing it does indeed carry something.

"Well, as long as you're okay, I'm fine with that."

"That's what that bastard gets for stealing something that didn't belong to him." He said as he heard a helicopter. "Gotta go."

"Be careful! I heard they're sending out the Guard Droids on you."

"Because I stole from a crooked government candidate, which we're just going to deface and bring him to the spotlight anyway?"

"Yes."

"Well, there's nothing new about that." He said. "See ya back at the base."

"See ya."

Luffy could see the helicopters reflection from the glass windows of the building and started to run, opening the door to get inside the building. He ran down a few hallways, getting into room after room, even having to disarm and knock out guards that were in his way. He found his way to the basement, which he turned the earpiece to a new person, still running and jumping over pipes.

"Nami! It's Luffy."

"About time you called. Is the diamond safe?"

He checked and saw that the diamond was just a blue as the depths of the ocean and shined brightly even in the dim room. "Not a chip on it."

"Good. I got your location and you're damn lucky. The basement you're in right now connects to another building. But you're going to have some trouble getting there."

"Since when have I have trouble on a mission."

"Luffy, you're the only person without a partner in this team. One of these days you're going to be in a tight spot that you can't do alone. Even the Guard Droids are giving the rest of us hell."

"I'll be fine Nami. I'll find myself a good one to be my partner soon."

"I just worry Luffy…"

"I know, but I haven't gotten to a pickle for a month now."

"That was lucky, next time wouldn't be so great. You're a magnet for trouble."

"Like right now?"

She sighed. "Just get back to base so we can get the reward for that thing."

He chuckled as he sharply turned every corner before seeing an elevator and pressed the highest level it can go up. He took this time to breathe and stretched out his legs so they wouldn't cramp on him with the next bout. He looked at the news bulletin and saw a picture of the president with another man who created a new security weapon.

The Guard Droids.

Theses 'guards' were actually genetic human beings with the intellect that could match a super computer and always learning. In a way they were androids without the technology similar to robots or cyborgs.

-XxX-

The elevator stopped and he went out, looked for anyplace with a signs saying stairs, because he needed to get to the roof. And once he did, he went up and out the door, back into the sunshine and looking at some of the taller buildings that outmatched the one he was on.

He looked everywhere for some place to keep moving, but found that he was on a building that had no ramp and the other buildings were too tall and far for him to jump to.

Then a helicopter appeared before him on the edge, which a crazy idea came to mind. He waited and timed it before he backed up from the edge and ran, jumped, and grabbed the rail under the helicopter.

He grabbed, literally, as if his life was on the line as the helicopter went up higher. He looked at the buildings and thought about his next plan of action. When he saw a building he can jump off to, he took the chance and nailed it. His legs were in pain due to his landing before rolling, but he shook it off and started to run to a door to go down stairs and started to run around the halls.

He heard some one coming and saw a trash vent to the wall. He went in, slide down the vent, smelling the garbage as well as getting covered by it before getting into the final destination of the trash sight.

He emerged from the trash and was about to get out when he heard someone come into the place and had to stay put.

-XxX-

"Damn Guard Droid… Looks like a demon and goes haywire."

He felt something being thrown on top of him, moving the trash that was hiding him, and saw green hair.

"Damn it! It was my first test run and it turns out to be a dupe! It's a good thing nobody knows that I finished this one. All I have to do is do the whole thing from scratch, and not make something that has a stupid hair color. Who the hell is going to be intimidated by a guard with green hair?! Honestly! How the hell did that computer make that happen?!"

-XxX-

After sometime, the footsteps disappeared behind the door, and he felt that it was safe to move around.

He moved the body so that it was lying on top of the garbage while he's getting out from hiding in it then took a good look at the 'guard'.

He moved the sheet that was covering the face and had to hold his breath at the calm, almost how the samurai would look on those statutes, and almost looked asleep. The man seemed strong with a sculptured, athletic body, even though it was wrapped in the sheet. Overall, his body seemed angular and matured with a nice tan skin.

As Luffy looked at this abandoned 'project' and one thing came to his mind. 'He looks so cool!' He smiled as another idea came up. 'I just found my partner!' He thought happily when he heard someone shouting and running towards where he was.

"Crap." He whispered as he moved the garbage so that it hid the other as well. "Gomen, I'll make it up to you." He whispered as he covered himself with the garbage and waited, using the small space to look through to see the men coming in.

"Find anything?" Said a man who casually walked in with a Guard Droid next to him.

"No sir." Said one of the men.

"Hmm… Scan!"

'Crap!' He thought, knowing that if he was found, he was in deep shit… Not the one he's hiding in at the moment.

But it seemed Fortune herself cut him some slack as the dumpster moved out of the building before the Guard Droid could find his heat signal.

-XxX-

Once out in the open, he moved the garbage off of him so he could breathe before quickly doing the same for the other, who looked like he was still asleep.

"That was a close one!" He said as he looked around to find the best way possible to get back to base with a 'guard'.

He saw the building where his base was located and, as if Fortune was favoring him today, saw that the place was closed off for construction, therefore it was open to him.

As the dumpster stopped at the light, he lifted the other on him and jumped to the ground before walking to the front of the doors, which was taped off and ignored by him and went up to the elevator. He typed in a code to make the door open and operative before pressing the button to go up.

"Luffy?" Nami's voice was heard through his earpiece. "What the hell happened?"

"I had to find a new route to get back."

"On the ground?"

"Yeah. You never guess what happened!"

"Save it! Knowing you it has to be something crazy. And I'm not in the mood for that. Is the diamond still with you."

He checked, and was relieved that it was till there. "Yep!"

"Good. Seeing that you're at base, I'll see you in a few minutes."

"Can I stop by my room first. I had to take a dumpster to get back here."

"Gross, okay, but you got five minutes. Got it?"

The doors opened. "Got it." He said as he balanced the body on his back and quickly went to his room, which was basically a couch, a desk, a dresser, a personal bathroom, and a computer.

-XxX-

"I have to talk to Nami for a moment, okay? I'll try to figure you out once I get back, okay?" He said as he placed the other on the couch. "Jeeze, you and I need a bath after this. And you need clothes…" He took a moment to think. "What was I going to do?"

"Luffy!"

"Ow! Hai! Hai!" He ran out of his room, closing the door as he did and headed up the stairs to one door that lead him to a large room with a round, 'C' shaped table.

"Anchor!" A man in his early to mid thirties with red hair and three slashes on his left eye went up, only to back away a little. "You smell ripe."

"I know, I have to get away in a dumpster."

"That's original."

A young woman of eighteen, ginger orange hair a bit above shoulder length, and dark hazel eyes marched up and whacked the young man. "You baka! You were close to being caught!"

"Ow… That hurts Nami!"

"It's going to hurt more if you don't show me the diamond!"

He took it out of his pocket and she immediately took a quick look at it.

"It's still in fine condition. Good job." She said.

"Thanks." He said with a grin. "You never believe what I found!" He was going to explain about him finding a partner when three figures jumped through the roof opening.

"About time you got back!" Nami shouted.

"Gomen, Nami-swan, those guys don't know when to quit." Said a man of nineteen, who was thin, poised, has sun blonde hair with a lock of it covering his left eye while the visible one showed the dark blue iris and the unique curly brow.

"You better get what you guys were assigned to get." Nami said.

"We did Nami." Said a young man of seventeen, who looked thin, but not as poised with a semi-dark tan skin, thick lips, thick curly black hair tied to a pony tail, and a long nose. He reached to his pocket and took out a computer chip.

"What's this for again?" Asked a small, light brown furry figure that looked like a reindeer, but often mistaken as a takanuki, or a raccoon-dog.

"It's for one of our clients who suspects foul play in his company." Nami explained. "How did Chopper do, Sanji?" She looked at the blonde.

"He did great for his first try. The different forms he's able to do came quite in handy when we're going from one building to another. Even saved Usopp from falling."

"I thought I saw my life flashed before my eyes." The young man, Usopp, said.

"And yet you're still running with us."

"Well, yeah, no one else would take me in. And I'm not that bad at running."

"We know." Shanks said. "Everyone here is good at that."

"I better get cleaned up and rest a bit." Luffy said as he looked at Sanji. "What's for dinner?"

"Give me time to breathe Luffy, I just got back."

"What the hell happened to you?"

"I took a dumpster back to the base." He said. "And you know something!"

"We don't want to hear it Luffy." Sanji said. "Just get cleaned already before you stick up the place."

"Okay. Oi, Nami, when are Robin and Franky coming back with Brook?"

"Soon Luffy, now get washed."

"Okay!" He said as he left the room, deciding to surprise everyone with his new partner over at dinner.

-XxX-

As he went back to his room, he saw that the other hadn't moved and inch. He locked the door, which he rarely does, but this was important, and went to the bathroom to ready the tub.

Once he got it to what he liked, he went back into the room to go to a dresser next to the couch and took out his clothes, as well as opened another drawer for some bigger clothes for his new partner.

"You're lucky that I got a huge tub! Otherwise this will be a little hard. And that my brother left some of his clothes here as well." He said as he took them to the bathroom before returning for the other and balanced him on his back and went back into the bathroom.

"It's a good thing you're not some kind of robot… or this bath idea wouldn't be possible. I don't want to be shocked to death you know."

Once in the bathroom, he set the other on the floor carefully and removed the sheet that covered the body. When he did, he had to make sure his eyes were in their sockets.

The man's torso was perfectly muscularly built and toned with the light sun kissed tan.

He put his hand around one arm and found it impossible to wrap his hand around the muscled arm. "Damn… Your muscles are bigger…" He pouted as he looked at his own arm, which was lanky, but has some muscle to them as well. "Maybe you can help me be stronger, and I'll help you out as well. Everyone says I'm a piece of work." He smiled as he took of the rest of the sheet, and had to hold his breath. He shook himself to calm down before lifting the other up to put into the bath, which was filled up to the man's chin.

"You're a lot more trouble when you're 'asleep'." He said as he took out the shampoo, which was also his brothers, but he figured the other wouldn't like the smell of vanilla and strawberries. So he went with his brothers original and started washing his hair.

-XxX-

After a half an hour of washing both the other and himself, he pulled the plug from the tub and the next task was drying when someone knocked on his door.

"Luffy? Are you okay?" It was Usopp.

"Hai! The garbage stuff was really hard to get the smell off! But I'm out now!"

"Oh, okay. Well, dinner is almost ready, so you know."

"Thanks!" He said as he sighed. "And they say I'm a piece of work." He looked at the other. "And you don't have to do anything."

After drying he put on his clothes quickly first before starting with the other, with the underwear first, which he had no problem doing since they were both guys, then the knee length pants, then finally a plain light blue, button up top that was left open. Once that was done he started to lift the other up and headed to the room with the couch.

Once he placed the other on the couch, he took a huge breath when the door knocked.

"Luffy? Is everything alright?" It was Shanks.

"Hai! Just not decent yet."

"Aye! Dinner is ready so you know."

"Hai!" He said but he looked at the man on his couch. 'But I wanted to introduce him to everyone. How the hell do I turn this guy on?' He thought as he bent down a bit too closely towards the man's face, as if trying to find the answer on the other's face.

Of course, Fortune has been helpful all day to him and now wants to play.

Luffy had great balance in many situations, but this time he found himself getting too close and reacted too late as his lips were on top of the others. He backed up soon after it happened, but noticed that the tan skin seemed darker and the other's hand twitched before the face scrunched, then relaxed before the eyes opened to reveal pearl green with light specks of emerald.

He watched as the other sat up, looked around the room before the sharp gaze fell onto him.

"I'm Roronoa Zoro, who the hell are you?"

#+#

* * *

Okay! Here's my new fic that has been plauging me for sometime, along with others, but they are not fully... tweeked to the way I like it yet.

Sanji: It's an interesting idea.

I got it when I was watching my brother play Mirrors Edge and read the manga Ultimo. I don't know, it just seems good at the time.

Sanji: And it still is Cupid-swan.

Just call me Cupid please. I don't really like the '-swan' thing.

Sanji: (puppy pouts)

Okay! Okay! You can call me that. Just don't do that! It's a bit scary.

Sanji: (chuckles) Sorry, just had to.

(sighs) So, what do you think guys?


	2. Meet My Partner!

Chapter 2: Meet My Partner!

#+#

Luffy just had his mouth open in shock before the information sank in. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy…" He said.

"Well, Luffy, mind telling me where the hell am I and why?"

"That's an interesting story really."

The other looked at him confused when knocking was heard.

"Luffy! What's taking you so long!?" It was Nami.

He quickly covered the other's mouth before responding. "I'll be right there!"

"Men!" She said as he knew that she had left.

"Zoro..." He said as he uncovered the other's mouth. "Are you hungry at all?" This, of course was answered with the other's stomach growling. He smiled as he patted the other's shoulders. "Don't worry, Sanji's the best chef here. He always makes the best food around."

"You haven't answered my question."

"It's a secret." Luffy said with a wink. "But right now, its dinner time, and I know my friends will want to meet you."

"I don't even know you…"

"I know, but at this point you have no where to go. And I already decided that you're going to be my partner."

"In what?"

"You'll see! Now come on! Dinner's ready!" He said as he grabbed the man by the hand and they ran up the stairs before stopping in front of the door.

"I better tell them before they meet you." He said as he opened the door.

-XxX-

"About time you baka!" Sanji said. "Your share is getting cold!"

"Your food tastes great anyway."

"Shut up!"

"What took you so long Luffy?" Chopper asked. "You're usually the first one here."

"I have an announcement!" He said with a wide grin as he made note that everyone, including Robin, Franky and Brook, were in the same room.

"This better be good." Shanks said in a teasing manner.

"I would like all of you to meet my new partner!" He grabbed the other's hand and brought him out to be seen by all. "His name is Roronoa Zoro!"

There was dead silence in the room.

"Luffy…" Nami said. "Is that a Guard Droid."

He nodded. "Some jerk threw him out while I was hiding."

"Huh? Is that what happened?" Zoro said.

"Luffy-san…" Robin said with a clam smile. "Why would anyone throw out a perfectly good Guard Droid?"

She was a woman of twenty-eight, with straight black-blue hair, startling blue eyes, a body that a model will kill for, and a skin that was a perfect olive tan.

"The jerk said that he was a dupe and was getting rid of him so no one will know that he failed, or something like that."

Zoro slightly twitched at that.

"I wonder why…" Robin said. "Did he just 'wake up'?"

He nodded.

"How did you pull that? Many Guard Droids have a different way of being 'awake'."

He would like to say the truth to that, but felt like he shouldn't. "I don't know how it happened."

She seems to get the hint as she mentioned them to sit. "Well, dinner is still warm if the both of you are up to it."

"I'm always up for food!" Luffy said as he dragged the other to two empty spots.

"Do Guard Droids eat food?" Sanji asked.

"Of course." Robin said.

"How the hell did you get so lucky Luffy?" Usopp said.

"I don't know." Luffy said as he immediately stuffed his face with the food that was in front of him.

Zoro just observed everyone before picking up his fork and took a bite of something that was white and soft.

"Here Zoro, try this steak! It's the best one!" Luffy said as he plopped the last steak out.

Everyone paused to see this very rare sight.

Luffy, known by everyone in the group, never once shared his food, especially meat. And it was the biggest slab of steak there.

Zoro, paying no mind what everyone else thought, and only knowing little about his new… partner, he just cut the meat in half and gave that half to the young man. "This is enough."

"Okay, whatever works for you." Luffy said as he finished the half slice of meat while the other simply cut his and ate it.

"Did we stumble into some Twilight Zone?"

"You got to stop watching those old shows, Usopp." Sanji said. "Enjoy this while it lasts, he'll be back to his old routine as soon as this guy gets used to our line of work."

Robin giggled as Franky leaned down to whisper.

Franky is a large muscular guy with thin legs, light blue eyes and hair, and a metal nose. "Robin, are you sure? You said that there's different ways, but I could only know of one."

She nodded. "Hai… But I don't think anyone needs to know about that."

"I see… But what do you think of the name? I doubt even Luffy can come up with a good name like that."

"That's true…" She said. "It's rare for any kind of Guard Droid to have a unique name."

"And?"

She looked at the new member of the group, calmly eating and observing while the young man next to him pointed to each member, explaining who's who. "It's still too early to know if he's a threat or not, but Luffy is attached to him quickly. And he really does need a partner at the moment."

"Yeah, I guess your right. And you usually are ninety-nine point nine percent of the time."

She giggled. "Now you're just flirting with me."

He blushed as he straightened and laughed loudly, making it seem like she told a great joke.

Zoro, in the mean time, got everyone's name and occupation down in his mind and wondered what kind of 'line of work' they did.

"Luffy." Nami said. "You know that he has to go through the course before he can officially be your partner."

He nodded. "Yeah, but I know he'll do great."

"That's for me to know." Nami said. "I don't want you to have a partner that ends up being useless if he can't run right or jump far enough."

"Oi. I'm right here." Zoro said.

"He'll be great Nami." Luffy pressed on.

"We go from roof top to roof top!" She said. "We take our lives to consideration every time we step out of here and use everything in our ability and balance as to not end up falling to the ground."

"What exactly are you talking about?" Zoro asked.

"We're runners." She said. "You'll find out tomorrow." She drank her tea quickly before excusing herself to go to bed. "We'll be expecting another job offer soon, so Luffy, tomorrow you and Robin teach him about the basics and pray this isn't his last meal."

"He'll be fine!" Luffy said as she left the room.

"It has been a long day…" Usopp said. "So I guess I'll-"

"Oh no you don't!" Sanji said. "You have dish cleaning duties with me tonight."

Usopp sighed. "Fine."

-XxX-

One by one everyone left before Luffy and Zoro headed to Luffy's room.

"Anchor? Zoro is going to stay with you?" Shanks asked.

"He wasn't assigned a room, and it's no problem."

Shanks nodded. "Okay then, but after the course, you need to find him some different clothes to wear if he's going to be your partner. He can't wear your brother's stuff for long you know."

"Hai!" He said as he and the other entered his room and closed the door. "Better get the bed out." He said as he moved to the couch and removed the cushions to pull the mattress out. "There!" He said with a proud smile as he looked over at the other, who was looking at his computer, which had news bulletins on at the moment. "I usually have those up when I'm here, in case I find something interesting to read." He said as he plopped onto the bed.

"Was I really found like you said you did."

"Yep, and I don't see what's wrong with you. You seemed perfectly fine by me."

Zoro didn't say anything as he moved to a corner sat down and looked like he was going to sleep.

"Zoro! Come sleep with me!"

"This is your room."

"I'm not going to have my partner sleep on the floor on the first day." He patted the empty spot.

Zoro sighed. "Look, Luffy, thanks for bringing me here and all. But I never exactly agreed on being your partner. Not to mention that I'm suppose to be here. What makes you so sure that I won't turn on you?"

Luffy smiled. "You won't."

"Easier said then done."

"Where else would you go if not here? Who else would trust you to be their partner if not me? And what will become of you if I wasn't hiding in that dumpster where you were thrown out like a crime being covered, which technically that's what happened."

Zoro sighed at the sense of the logic. "Simple, leave me there. I was never really 'alive' to begin with."

"You don't know that."

"Was I breathing?"

"No…"

"Did my heart beat?"

"I didn't check."

"I could've been another dead body and you would still do what you did."

"I could tell a dead body from a Guard Droid abandonee."

Zoro was losing this, and he knew it. "Why do you want me to be your partner? You don't know a thing about me."

"The guy who dumped you put a lot of work in, and Guard Droids have been genetically created to be almost super human anyway."

"And I happen to be an easy pick?"

"No… You look cool, but I could tell you're also strong. But I wasn't looking for a body guard."

Zoro sighed, running out of ideas to reason with someone he just met. "Whatever, I'm not going to continue this talk."

"At least sleep with me tonight, we may get you a room by tomorrow with the award money from the clients."

"I don't know if I'm going to be here."

"I may not know you, that's true. But these things don't always happen to me out of random. I don't even care if it's just plain luck that I happen to be at the place where you were going to be dumped. All I know is that you're the guy I want to be my partner."

"If I make out in one piece."

"I know you will."

"Again, how?"

"You're not the kind of guy who will give up." He smiled. "I'm the same way."

Zoro looked at the young man, studying.

"Now get in bed before I have to drag you up! I've dragged you pretty much for the most part of my day."

"Oh really?" He said as he got up and laid down on the vacant spot. "Happy?"

"Hai!" Luffy said as he laid his head on his pillow. "Nighty night Zoro!"

"Night Luffy." Zoro said as he looked up at the ceiling, which had glow in the dark stickers of stars. 'What messed up star was I under to have this?' He thought as heard the soft incoherent mumbles from the other and looked.

Luffy looked peaceful in his sleep as a soft smile tugged up from the corners of his lips and sighed in content.

He couldn't help but grin as well as he yawned and settled to a fitful sleep as well.

#+#


	3. Basics of Being a Runner

Chapter 3: The Basics of Being a Runner

#+#

The next morning, after a light breakfast, Luffy, Zoro, and Robin were walking on the ground towards the abandoned construction site, where there was a building that was mostly completed until the company supporting it went bankrupt and stood there for three years.

"Why are we here?" Zoro asked.

"This is the perfect spot for those who are starting out." Robin explained as they entered through the front doors and stopped. "The two of you wait here." She grabbed a stop watch and handed it to Luffy. "Would you mind timing me?"

"Sure thing Robin." He said as he zeroed the watch. "Ready?"

She stood at the front of the stairs and nodded.

"Go!" He said as he started the time as she started to run up the stairs.

"What is she doing?"

"We're going to do it too." Luffy pointed out. "It's to see how fit we are when it comes to the stairs. If you're unable to handle a huge flight of stairs, then we can't allow you to get out in the field when we start running from building to building.

"Building to- Wait! Nani!? Are you saying we're going to be stories from the ground, jumping from one building to the next?"

"Yep."

"You out of your mind?"

"Nope. Just like running and jumping. I have a lot of energy to do that, and all of us made an underground business out of it."

"Doing what?"

"Stealing back stolen property, take back kidnapped individuals, and dig up dirt. Depends on the client."

"I see…" He said as he heard a faint sound of 'stop' through the earpiece, making the young man press the button.

"You're fifteen minutes and twenty eight seconds."

"How many flights of stairs are there?"

"Twenty stories worth."

"In fifteen minutes!?"

"We've been doing this for awhile." Luffy said with a smile. "If you can get up there before thirty minutes without slowing down, then you're good. In fifteen and still have energy to continue, then you'll be more than okay." He said as he readied himself. "Trust me, this is only the easiest part of the course."

"Really now?" Zoro said as he stood, waiting for the signal to go.

"Ready? Go!"

-XxX-

Zoro ran up the stairs at the signal, and didn't stop until he found the only door to the roof top, where he saw Robin with the same stop watch.

"You did well for the first time, Roronoa-san." She said. "Fourteen minutes and forty eight seconds. How do you feel?"

"Great actually."

"Good." She pressed on the earpiece. "Come on up Luffy-san."

They waited for a good thirteen minutes before Luffy came up through the door, not a sweat on him.

"I heard you did great Zoro!"

"Close to fifteen minutes, no big deal."

"For the first time around that's good."

"We still got a lot more things to cover, Luffy-san." Robin said with a smile.

"Right! Building jumping time!"

"Huh? What do you do if they don't make it?"

"You have to be ready to die, even on the first day of a trial." Robin said.

"You're morbid…"

"It's true, but so far we didn't have anyone die on us."

"Good to know."

"So don't be our first." Robin said.

"Quit that!"

"Yosh! Watch me, okay!" Luffy said as he started from the door. "The best way to do this is to look around. There are times you're being perused so you better think fast." He looked, demonstrating how it's done before pointing to a board. "That board over there is one of the many options I can use to get from here to that building over there!" He pointed to a taller building.

"That building is taller than this one."

"Use your eyes! What do you see on the building?"

Zoro looked and saw glass windows on one side, concrete on the other with pipes coming up… "The pipes?"

"Yep!" He said as he started to run to the board, jump and grabbed the pipe.

"That's his favorite part of the course." Robin hinted as both continued to watch from where they stood as the young man made it to the top of the building.

"Try it out Zoro!"

"What happens if someone was stuck on the pipes."

"They learn to climb."

"You're pretty ruthless in this course."

"Well… We're picky about who we want in our group. We don't just bring people in by random. When we do, we run it by Luffy-san."

"How come?"

"He has a gift that surprises all of us from time to time. Like last night."

-XxX-

Zoro sighed as he looked around, seeing no other alternative and ran up the board, jumped and grabbed the pipe before starting to climb, not as quickly as the young man. "You make the climbing thing too easy!" He called out.

"Everyone says I'm a monkey when I climb."

"They were right!" He said as he made it to the top.

Luffy laughed as he helped the other up. "Okay Robin! Your turn!"

She did it just as easily as the young man, but was still half the time it took Zoro to climb up.

"Okay, what else should I know?"

"Look around and tell us." Luffy said.

Zoro did and saw some crates leading up to a platform above the door. "Get to higher ground."

"Good! When it's hard to see, keep going up as much as you can until you find a way."

They quickly got up and saw that there was a neighboring building that has a couple pipes then to an edge to walk on.

"Don't tell me, we're going to jump, grab that pipe, and hop onto the other pipe then hop onto the platform."

"That's where the balance comes in." Robin said as she demonstrated by easily getting down from the platform and crates, running at a fast speed, jumping, grabbing the pipe, got onto the next pipe, then onto the platform. "I'll see you in a bit." She said as she was pressed up against the wall as she walked along the edge.

"Okay!" He said as he looked at Zoro. "You got that?"

"The edge looks thin."

"Another thing, don't worry what it looks from one perspective. Make do what you can do."

"Okay… You certainly don't have average guys do this."

"Course not, that's suicide and irresponsible."

"Right…" He said as he gained some distance before running, grabbed the pipe, got to the other pipe, and judged his distance with the edge and took a chance.

-XxX-

'If I die, I die…' He thought as he nailed the landing, which turns out to be enough room for him to still keep his balance. "Huh…"

"Great job Zoro!"

"So, I should go on a head?"

"Yep! You have to keep moving!"

"Right." He said as he moved easily across and around the corner of the building, where there were more pipes for him to go on.

"Roronoa-san! Up here!"

He looked up to see Robin and climbed up.

"You did good." She said.

"So far." He said as Luffy followed soon after.

"Now the challenging part." He said as he pointed to the door.

"Busting through a door?"

"Going through buildings and being chased." Robin said.

"Wait, I get first hand of being chased?"

"Possibly. We're pretty well known to each and every building."

He looked at Luffy. "What do you usually do?"

"A variety of things."

"It all depends on the architecture of the building." Robin said. "We pretty much know most of the blueprint of some buildings. So, just follow our lead and you'll be okay."

"Okay…" He said as the two ran, which he picked up right away, as Luffy opened the door and the three ran down the halls, took an elevator to a certain floor, and went out, only to be caught by one security guard, which Luffy jumped kicked and knocked him out.

"Sorry Maki-san! Teaching!"

"You know him?!"

"He's dealed with us for three years!" Luffy said. "If we ever get a new recruit, he would know and leak it out to the press." He laughed. "You may be found to be a wanted guy by the end of the day."

"And that's good?!"

"As long as you don't screw up, and don't get caught by anyone, the reward bounty will be the status quo to anyone else who tries to get to our city."

"We have rivals?"

"From other parts of the city." Robin explained. "You see, it's not well known, but the best runners team to defeat all the other teams in terms of the amount of stolen goods retrieved, bounty awards, and how well recognized you are in the city, that team is considered the top."

"That's the goal here?"

"Nope!" Luffy said. "It's just fun!"

-XxX-

They jumped on banisters, shelves, tables, desks, breaking glass, and overall raising hell in the building.

Zoro really enjoyed running and doing all these things as he followed the two around. For him, it immediately became second nature as he found himself going ahead of the two, but not too far, he was Luffy's partner after all.

After raising enough hell in the building, they were in the basement getting to a neighboring building and using an elevator to go to the top floor, only to use the stairs there to get to the roof.

"And now for the greatest part of the course!" Luffy said as he pointed to the pole with a cable cord going down.

"We're going down now?"

"In some situations, you need to get down to get to a certain place." Robin said.

"When you're going down, be ready to roll when you need to land." Luffy said.

"Roll?"

Luffy nodded. "Watch." He said as he grabbed the cord with both hands and practically flew down to the next building, released, rolled and got up.

"Oh." Zoro said as Robin allowed him to go first.

"Don't look down." She said.

"I'm not afraid of heights." He said as he easily did the same thing as Luffy and waited for her to come join them.

"I do believe that's all you need to know." Robin said.

"Wasn't it fun?" Luffy asked with a smile on his face.

"It is. I enjoyed it."

"Great! I told you, you were going to be fine!"

"We hear you."

Robin giggled. "Well, shall we return to base from this point for something to eat?"

"Food!" Luffy cheered, making her laugh.

"I'm up for more practice." Zoro said as they headed out.

-XxX-

At the base, everyone was eating and Robin filled Nami in of the impressive progress of the course.

"He really did an impressive job today." Robin finished. "Kept up with Luffy better than I did."

"I guess that's good." Nami said. "It's always difficult keeping up with that guy."

"Sanji! Seconds!" Luffy called.

"That's your fifth 'seconds'!"

"Not my fault that you're food is too good!"

"Oi!"

Zoro was still not used to being around with large groups, but he still enjoyed the atmosphere as Shanks gave him some celebrational sake, which was just plain sake, and laughed at some of Luffy's antics.

"Luffy!" Nami called. "Tomorrow I'm giving you and Zoro enough belis to purchase new clothes and lunch. Don't try to spend it all. I would like to have some money left before our payment comes in."

"Okay!" Luffy said as he stole something from Usopp's plate, which caused a comical argument between the two.

Zoro shook his head even when small bones were thrown at his head, until one of them knocked him, spilling the sake on him, which he then join in the argument by stopping the current argument.

"He sure fits in quite well." Robin said, highly amused.

Nami sighed as she drank her tea. "Just great…"

"Brook! Play a song!" Luffy cheered.

"Yohohoho!" A man of his late thirties, a robotic looking skeleton with realistic black afro hair and wearing black formal looking clothing that helped his thin frame; though he is nothing but metal bone, took out a violin and played a happy, upbeat song.

The song seemed to do the trick as everyone seemed to calm down and have a good time.

Zoro noticed this and figured that he was pretty damn lucky after all.

#+#


	4. Parnter Promise

Okay... It's been awhile, I know. School started back up again and I have a lot of work to do. So forgive me if the updates won't be as fast as it used to, and I may not get to another fic for sometime as well. So please deal with this until then, okay?

Sanji: Do not worry Cupid-chan, they do understand your situation.

Thanks... reviews.

Sanji: Hai! (grabs two) From Mimi-chan!

For the first one, thanks and I understand. And for the second one, of course she's not really happy about it, it should've been explained a bit from the beginning, and when does Robin not know about something?

Sanji: (grabs another) From Iryann-san.

Thanks.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Dream-san!

(nods)

Sanji: Tch.

Sanji...

Sanji: (grabs another) From Tori-san!

Let's hope I can keep this up... And I suck at games, except tetris and solataire.

Sanji: (grabs two) Both from Soge-san!

A Guard Droid, which are genetic humans but they don't do the whole start from a baby type deal, I'm trying to fit that in, and you'll find out. As for the second review, so you do get it, I may try to put those guys in, because you need the baddies in, and I enjoyed writing that part of the chapter and I completely agree that Robin should show more of her athetic side.

Sanji: Ah... Robin-chawn...

She's Franky's you know.

Sanji: (sigh) I know... (grabs another) From DoubleMintTwins!

New reviewer? Anyway, I know there's errors, but then who doesn't have errors in their fics? And I'm glad you like it.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Gene-san!

I haven't heard from you in a long time! Thankies!

Sanji: (grabs another) From Hanabi-san!

Thanks.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Kira-chan!

And the better news? I'm not burnt out of these stories! Just having a hard time to get the free time in.

Sanji: (grabs another) From RobinxLuffy!

New reviewer to this fic, but I do know the name. Thanks and I hope you still enjoy.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Kamizacondor!

New reviewer! Thank you!

Sanji: (grabs last one) From Ookami-san!

Don't worry, most of the time I don't know what to say either.

Sanji: That's all the reviews today.

Well, enjoy everyone! I'm going to take a nap now.

* * *

Chapter 4: Parnter Promise

For a week, Zoro trained with Luffy and a few of the other members. He met a returning member, Vivi, who had to go on leave for family matters which was finally settled peacefully.

"Finally!" Nami exclaimed as everyone was in the meeting room. "Payday people!" She divided the money, which was by rank and experience. Thus leaving very little for the newest member. "You'll get more once you bring back something good." She explained. "I'm not going to give more when you didn't prove your retrieving skills."

"Fine." Zoro said, not really caring that he got less.

"Yosha! Time to shop for Zoro's clothes!"

"Eh?"

"I know my brother won't mind you wearing his clothes, but it doesn't really suit your style."

"What does style have to do with anything?"

"You'd be surprised." Sanji said.

"You see, Roronoa-san," Robin started "everyone here has a different style, but it's not for looks. Take Luffy-san for example. His clothes are a bit loose, but his pants have a lot of pockets. Perfect for retrieving small to medium items."

"As well as meat!"

She giggled as she continued. "And because it's so loose, it gives his body some room to breathe when he's running and jumping, but it's tight enough that it won't be snag on anything."

"And you? What's the purpose for looking like a domitrix?"

"Oi! You should respect your higher ups! You Green Bastard!"

"Can it Pervert Chef!"

"Calm down you two." Robin said easily. "I don't mind being called that at all. In a way, it's my persona." She leaned back in her seat and relaxed there, making Franky, Sanji, and Brook drool. "I wear this because I can easily move faster this way, and I can draw attention away while my partner takes care of things without being harmed. And, if we're retrieving something that's on paper or a small computer chip…" She pointed to her breasts. "I would just simply shove it down here." That caused the three perverts to have a nose bleed.

"Too much information, but then I did ask." Zoro said, completely unaffected by the whole thing. "Okay, so the clothes have to be not only comfortable, but also be useful in some way."

She nodded. "You're a quick learner."

"No, it was just too obvious."

She giggled.

"Well! We haven't had to report." Shanks said. "I saw we do go for some shopping, to update or restore some things that are needed.

"Agh!" Usopp said. "But the stuff that I usually get are twice as much as I earn!"

"Quit your whining." Sanji said. "As your partner, I have to help you out. Don't you remember?"

"I know! But I don't like it when you do!"

"Deal with it! It's been the golden rule of partnership since this shit started."

"Golden rule?" Zoro said, which Vivi kindly explained.

"Ever since the runners were first heard of and separated in groups of two, it's been an undecided rule to help each other out both in the field and on relaxing periods. Any profit made it entirely the individual's responsibility, but when a partner is involved, then one has to help at least pay half of the earnings. That's why the veterans are paid more when they get partnered up with someone new, they have enough to cover them until they advance in rankings and be able to purchase more."

"Besides me, who are the other new members?"

"Well… There's Chopper, he's been with us for a few weeks, then Brook for about a month, and then there's Usopp for at least five months. The rest of us are pretty much a last of the few 'Originals'."

"Huh?"

" 'Originals' are what some of the runners call when most of them didn't have a partner to help them out or be a part of some organized group. Just a bunch of crazy young kids that never had a huge grasp on life or death situations, and looking for the ultimate thrill."

"Is Luffy one of them?"

"Oh yes! He and his brother were some of the few that started this new life for outcasts with amazing abilities."

"Exactly how did all this start?"

"You're going to ask Luffy that." Vivi said as she looked at the said young man, who was blurting out ideas of what store to go to first and what things he should get to update.

"Okay everyone!" Shanks said. "Everyone head out!"

#-/\-#

On the ground, the buildings looked slightly menacing with the great heights.

"No matter how you look at it." Sanji said, smoking a cigarette. "It's intimidating."

"No big deal." Zoro said, holding a few bags of his choice of clothes."

"Make sure you keep the tags on while we do the run."

"Why?"

"Sometimes the clothes we pick out don't work out after all."

"Wouldn't they need to be cleaned?"

"Vivi is a master of washing without getting anything wet." Sanji said.

"Yosha!" Luffy and Usopp said as they walked out.

"Got what you needed?" Sanji asked.

"Yep!" The two said in unison as they laughed and joked around as they headed back to their base.

#-/\-#

"Come on Zoro!" Luffy whined as he waited for the other on the pulled out bed.

"Would you shut up Luffy!" Zoro said through the bathroom door before he opened it to reveal his new clothes. He was wearing a tight white tank, a loose black tank, a dark green vest that reached his waist, slightly loose dark pants that have two deep pockets, and black boot-like shoes as well as a piece of black cloth tied around his upper left bicep.

"Suguoi!" Luffy said as stars were in his eyes. "That looks so cool on you!"

Zoro shrugged. "It has to pass the run through though." He said as he put on black, fingerless leather gloves. "What did you get?"

"Oh, I just asked the guy to repair my sandals." He said as he lifted his foot with the sandal on. "I never go out without these on."

"They're lucky or something?"

"Nah! Boshi is the one with luck here."

"Boshi?" He said as he saw the strawhat, hanging on the string on the other's back.

"Yep! When I'm in a tight spot, I know Boshi's luck will come through for me." He said. "Plus Shanks gave it to me, so it's extra special."

"Aren't you afraid that you would lose it when you run?"

"Not really. Boshi went through a lot before Shanks gave it to me. Boshi is the true veteran here."

Zoro looked at the young man as he sat down next to the other on the bed. "I've been meaning to ask you. Just how did the runners start out?"

Luffy blinked than smiled. "Well, I was just a kid then, but me and my brother were just suddenly abandoned by our folks. I can't really remember what they looked like, but I remember when Shanks took us in. He was the one who taught us the life style of a runner. But then we found more people who do the same in their own style. But I was the one who got everyone in trouble and started to run from building to building. It was so crazy that time, but I was trained well to act quickly when the situation called for it."

He smiled as he remembered the time.

"Then… it just branched out. Just a bunch of kids that had nowhere to go, and no one to care about us. People like Shanks would usually bring them and it became like tradition. Almost like a family at a dinner table, but this was better. The idea of a partnership branched on its own, no one knows why, but it made sense. That is until one died, then we look for recruits that have the ability and that society either shunned or don't recognize."

"Is this some kind of cry of attention then?"

Luffy shrugged. "I don't know. I just like running and be able to go higher than the birds."

Zoro looked at the other, as if trying to understand the underlying meaning.

"Luffy!" Chopper said as he knocked on the door. "We're ready to head out now."

"Okay!" Luffy said as he bounced off the bed. "Let's go Zoro!"

"Hai." He said as he ran after the young man.

#-/\-#

After about a half an hour running form building to building in the evening, they were separated from the others and were just gazing down at the city below.

"Isn't it amazing Zoro?"

"Huh?"

"During the day, it's the buildings that look scary. But at night, everything looks so pretty with all the lights below."

Zoro looked at the city lights, and it was definitely different than hours previous.

"And the best part…" Luffy looked up where the sun just barely set over the horizon. "Is that one can get a view like this… and not feel any worry at all."

Zoro looked at the sunset and thought about things up to this point. "You really think I can fulfill my duty as your partner?"

"Eh?"

"I know I said this before. But you don't know anything about me… and that the fact that I'm a Guard Droid can be a huge factor to this. I may have been 'thrown out', but what if they come to look for me?"

"Then they'll think you're in miles of garbage or burned along with it."

"And if I happen to get enough attention that the news will catch me and someone recognizes me?"

Luffy just looked at the man before smiling. "Then let's make a promise."

"A promise?"

He nodded as he held up his fist with his pinky extended out. "I promise to help Zoro for as long as I live."

Zoro looked at the hand before he mimicked the motion and curled it his pinky around the others. "I promise to keep you safe and out of harm for as long as I am your partner."

Luffy smiled as he put a bit more grip on the other's pinky, sealing the promise. "Whoever breaks this promise first has to break their pinky!"

Zoro chuckled. "That so?"

"Yep!" He said as they released their grip and continued to watch the city lights as the sun settled completely.

"It really is beautiful." Zoro said.

#-/\-#

Somewhere within the city, in one of the buildings, a sound of crashing was heard.

"Do you have any idea what you have done!?"

"I-I'm sorry sir! I-I wasn't a-aware that-"

"Of course you weren't aware of it! No one was supposed to know! Your project was the closest one to be completed. And now he's gone!"

"I-I don't understand…" Said the young scientist. "Why my project?"

"Because yours was the most human out of all of them!" Shouted the man. "You have perfected the anatomy of the body down to the brain functions! And I wanted to get him as quickly as possible!"

"W-Why sir? Why this specific person?"

The man growled as he walked away from the man to face the other side of the room. "Because he's the replacement of someone that my men failed to do."

"What do you mean?" The man asked before he heard a click, which was followed by a bang.

The man put his gun away and started to head out of the room. 'Nothing is according to plan again!' He thought. 'I can't lose that bastard again!'


	5. Leap of Faith

Chapter 5: Leap of Faith

The next day, before the sun was even up, Nami's alert went off on her computer. She got up to take a look and was immediately awake. "Vivi! Get up!" She said, shaking the young girl on the bed on the opposite side from what she was sleeping on.

"Huh?" Vivi said groggily. "What's going on?" She asked as she sat up, the blanket covering her front.

"We have an alert! We have to get everyone assembled now."

"Why?" She asked, getting a little more awake now.

"There was a murder! And the cops think it's the runners!"

#-/\-#

"What!?" Everyone said as they were in the meeting room.

"It's true." Shanks said as he shut off the transparent hologram of the news report. "We've been called many things for a long time. But murder is not something we do. We do kill when there's no other choice in the matter. But we don't attack anyone that is not in our way."

"What do you make of this then?" Franky asked.

"At this point, I'm not entirely sure." Shanks said as he sat down. "For now, we'll go on as usual. It's just one murder being blamed by our community. But that's just the word until they get the real story."

"Who was it?" Robin asked.

"It was a young student working on the Guard Droid project. Apparently he was taking the next level of making the Guard Droids appear more human to the point where no one can tell the difference." Nami said as she turned a hologram on, revealing a picture of the murdered man.

"That's the guy that threw Zoro out!" Luffy called out.

"You sure?"

"Positive!"

"It would make sense." Robin said. "If this man was making Guard Droids appear more human, then Zoro is obviously a product of that."

"But he threw the bastard out." Sanji pointed out.

"Oi! I'm right here!"

"True." Robin continued. "That's what confuses me. Are you sure you heard correctly Luffy?"

"Yeah, he said that Zoro was a dupe and that he couldn't understand why the computer made Zoro have green hair."

"You say he blamed the computer?"

Luffy nodded. "Yep."

Robin then had a thoughtful expression.

"Looks like we're going to be gone for a bit." Franky said, knowing the look all too well.

"Where are you going?" Brook asked.

"Research hunting." Franky said. "Whenever we come across something like this, Robin is the first person to want to get the answers."

Shanks nodded. "That seems to be the logical way to approach this at the moment." He said as he looked at everyone. "Okay everyone, for now don't let this trouble you. We've been hated for being trouble makers anyway, so we'll continue just as before and standby for any retrieval opportunities."

"Hai!" Everyone said in unison.

"The only group that will not respond to the retrieval is Robin and Franky. The rest of you head out!"

With that, one by one they went out of the sky light and went their separate ways.

#-/\-#

Zoro and Luffy went to building to building before stopping to take a breather.

"What a great day!" Luffy said as he stretched out. "I don't mind that it rains or snows, but it really is difficult when we have to do this for a job."

"Luffy…" Zoro said as he looked at the ground. "If the man who was murdered really was responsible for creating me… Am I really okay to be here?"

Luffy went up to the other and pulled his cheeks. "What are you talking about? Baka!" He said as he let the other's cheeks go. "Did you forget our promise?"

Zoro blinked as he rubbed the abused cheek. "This is different Luffy! Whoever killed him obviously has something to do with me!"

"How do you know that?"

"How many of those bastards throw away a Guard Droid? Even Robin said that I was different than the other Guard Droids."

"So?"

"Luffy! You can be in danger because of me!"

"Then, as my partner, you would make sure that doesn't happen."

Zoro didn't know how to explain himself further from that, seeing that there's no way the other would let him go.

"Zoro… Just because the guy that supposedly created the blueprint for a Guard Droid ends up dead, it doesn't mean that it must've been your fault. And besides, I bet that guy wasn't the first to throw away a special Guard Droid, just because it didn't fit what 'they' wanted it to be. You're lucky, not because I found you, though that is a plus, you're able to be yourself. Something that other Guard Droids don't really have."

Zoro didn't know what to say to that, but the words sank in easily and he was able to relax. "Thanks Luffy."

Luffy smiled. "What are friends for?" He said as he heard a helicopter coming around. "We better get a move on then." He said as they both went through the door and picked up their speed as they ran through the interior of the building.

#-/\-#

As they ran to the basement, Luffy contacted Nami. "Oi! Nami! Where to?"

"Hold on! I'm currently trying to get away from some guys at the moment."

"Oh! Sorry about that! I'll ask Shanks." He said as he switched his ear piece to the base. "Shanks! Can you pinpoint where we are at the moment?"

"Just a minute. Ah! Here it is! The basement doesn't have another exit, but there's another level below that that leads to the sewer system."

"Where's that?"

"You're not serious about going down there?"

"I hid in garbage. How bad can it be?"

Zoro seemed to agree with Shanks at the moment, but when he heard someone coming down, he realized that they didn't have a choice.

Luffy grabbed the other's hand as they ran to where Shanks told him where to get to the sewer system.

#-/\-#

"Okay… this is 'not' part of the training!" Zoro said as he had to hold his nose from the stench that almost seemed poisonous.

"We're almost out of here."

"That's what you said a half an hour ago!"

"Here we are!" Luffy said as he went up to a door, opened it, and both ran out to a boiler room then up the stairs to the first floor.

They were being careful not to be spotted as they ran to an empty elevator and pressed the top button to get to the top of the building they were in.

"Which building are we in?" Zoro asked.

"Does it matter?" Luffy said as he stretched. "The important thing is that we get out of here before anyone finds us."

As if a cruel hand was being played, the elevator stopped five levels before the doors opened to reveal a group of five security cops.

For a moment they just stared at one another and none made a move.

"Hiya!" Luffy said as the guards were just about to get their guns as Zoro grabbed him and bulldozered the cops.

"Run! Run!" Zoro said as he set the other down as they started heading towards the stairs and got up about two levels before they saw cops coming down from the other level and had to exit to the nearest door of the level they were on.

They ran for a bit before seeing another group of cops got one side, a group of cops coming out of the stair way, and the elevators opened to reveal more cops.

"Shit…" Luffy said. "This is really bad Zoro…"

They looked for any other options, only to realize that there's no other way out except a long hallway that lead to a window that viewed another building.

Zoro looked at the situation they were in and something clicked in his mind. "Luffy… Get on my back."

"Huh?"

"Get on my back and don't say anything." He said as the other did what the he told him to do, making the cops point out their guns towards them.

"Don't move or we'll shoot!" Said one cop as the man seemed to target his sights on the window.

Zoro managed to silenced everything around him and only focused on the building beyond the window. His heart started to race as his vision made the long hallway seem short and the building closer. When he felt Luffy tightening up his grip on him, he ran.

The next thing anyone could say, was that the man carrying a teen ran like a bullet being fired towards the window and went through it. Eye witnesses would say that there was a man that flew across from one building and crashed through the window of the neighboring building.

#-/\-#

Both Zoro and Luffy landed with a roll and stayed there for a moment before getting up and started to run to the elevator and entered the small cubical room before pressing the top button.

"What the hell was that?" Luffy asked.

"I don't know…"

"You sounded like you were going to have an attack… But then that… You're amazing Zoro." Luffy said as he leaned his back against the wall. "I thought we were goner back with the cops, you know?"

"Yeah…" Zoro said as he smiled. "I was kinda getting a little worried."

"Ah! It worked out okay!"

"**LUFFY! ZORO!**"

Both cringed when their earpieces almost made them deaf.

"Ow… Shanks! That hurts!"

"Just what the hell happened there!?"

"Zoro got us out of a tight spot."

"Zoro? Oh that's right, he's a Guard Droid."

"We're here Luffy."

"Okay, we have to go now Shanks."

"Okay, no more crazy stunts, okay!"

"Can't guarantee that!" Luffy said as he started to run with Zoro.

#-/\-#

Later that day, back at base, everyone crowded Zoro as they wanted to hear what just happened. But then the news broadcast came on and the head lines were in bold, red lettering.

'_Rouge Guard Droid: Possible Suspect of Murder'_

"Oh come on!" Luffy said, outraged.

"Let it be Luf." Shanks said. "They're not sure about anything yet. And I do believe, at least for this week, you and Zoro better stay here to keep a low profile."

Luffy pouted, not liking the idea at all, but agreed to it all the same.

#-/\-#

Somewhere in the city at the same time, the news was going on in a dark room as a figure sat in a chair. "Can it be?" Said the man. "Is it possible?" He paused as he got up and made a call. "Yes… I would like something retrieved… They're three Japanese swords… They were recently stolen from me, but no one else seems to be successful in getting them, and I heard from many sources that your community is the best… What about the one on the news? … I see… Yes, I'll tell you where they are…"

Once he was done with his call, he hung up. "Now… let's see if you're really the one that got away…"


	6. Anonymous Retrieval

(runs and collapses) Last one...

Sanji: Cupid-swan! Are you okay?

Just do the reviews.

Sanji: Uh... sure. (grabs one) From Kira-chan

Here's the new chapters! (organizes them)

Sanji: (grabs another) From Tori-san

Hopefully these chapters would do the same.

Sanji: (grabs another) From KinSinja

Here they are!

Sanji: (grabs another) From Rie-no-Hisato

New one! What's not to like?

Sanji: Hmph! (grabs another) From Dream-san

Oh Sanji! Don't be like that! Yosha! That's great to know!

Sanji: What's so great about that Marimo anyway? (grabs another) From Mimi-chan

In chapter 4... I know, I'm surprised I could even do that. And 5... I would. And you have your good traits too, Sanji!

Sanji: That sounded sweet coming from you! (grabs another) From FastlyFadingIntoDarkness

Well, here they are.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Kirai-Ninja

Yes. Soon. He just ate mine three days ago!

Sanji: Baka... (grabs another) From Mizuki hikari

The wait is over… for now.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Gecko-san

It was just an example for you…

Sanji: (grabs last one) From Hmob1994

I know, I have that problem. And thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Sanji: That's all.

Good! (faints)

Sanji: (grabs) Uh... Enjoy these new chapters!

* * *

Chapter 6: Anonymous Retrieval

#-+-#

The next day, Luffy and Zoro were sitting on the couch, watching the television.

"This is so boring!" Luffy whined.

"This is only temporary, Luffy." Zoro said. "We just have to sit this out for a few days, let the heat die down, and we're back to causing trouble."

Luffy smiled as he thought about all the trouble they were going to get into when they're able to. "I can't wait!" He said as he was getting restless.

Zoro wrapped his arm around the other's waist. "I don't like this either, but we may not be so lucky like last time. There may be cops in every building, just waiting for one of us to dare enter. We have to take a short break while the hysteria is going on. Okay?"

Luffy pouted. "I just don't like being in one place for so long!" He said. "I wanna run!"

Zoro sighed. "Listen you!" He said as he poked the other on the side, and he was going to continue when the other laughed.

"Don't do that! That tickles!"

"Oh?"

"Uh oh…"

Zoro grinned as an idea came up. "Well then, since you're so bored…" He said as he started attacking the young man's side with pokes, which made the other laugh.

"I-I-I ca-can't breathe!" Luffy said making the other stop.

"Better?"

Luffy was taking some deep breaths as he giggled a bit. "You're such a jerk!"

"Oh well, I guess I'll live with that."

"Oh, so you got Luffy to stop complaining." Shanks said as he went in and sat on the couch.

"Shanks!" Luffy whined. "When can we go out?"

"It was working." Zoro said as he watched the television, but at the same time wasn't watching.

"Well…" Shanks said making the two look at him. "I just got a call and the guy who organizes our retrieval customers told me that we have a customer who wants only you two to do the job."

"We'll take it!" Luffy said.

"Oi, listen to what he has to say first." Zoro said as he looked at Shanks. "Continue."

"Well, it seems this customer wants you two to retrieve three Japanese swords that were recently stolen."

"Recently?" Zoro said.

"Japanese swords!" Luffy said, getting excited. "Sounds so cool!"

"The thing is the location is unusual."

"How?" Luffy asked.

"It's in the warehouse district."

"So?"

"What he means is who ever our customer is, how could he possibly know where the swords are if they were stolen." Zoro said.

"Yeah." Shanks said.

"Maybe he knows the guys who did it, but he can't get it because he's probably not fit enough for the job."

"Oh, I didn't think about that." Shanks said. "But there's still that thing going on with the cops. And the warehouse district isn't our usual route."

"We'll find a way Shanks!" Luffy said. "Can we go now?"

Shanks said. "I don't know Luffy… the murder thing is still going on you know."

"We'll be careful. I got Zoro with me."

"True… Zoro-san? Is it okay with you then?"

Zoro shrugged. "If I don't go, then Luffy will get himself into trouble."

"Yay!" Luffy said as he hugged his partner.

"Looks like I'm outnumbered." Shanks said with a laugh. "Well then, be careful you two."

"Yosha!" Luffy cheered as he grabbed the other by the wrist and dragged him off the couch. "Come on, Zoro! Come on!"

"Oi! Oi! Take it easy!" Zoro said as he regained balance.

Shanks just chuckled as he watched the two leave the room. "That Luffy…" He said as he got up to help himself some beer. "And that Zoro isn't so bad either. At least I can trust him to keep my little Anchor safe." He looked through the paper, and read some of the things that didn't have the big pictures and usually a paragraph long.

-XxX-

Meanwhile, with Luffy and Zoro, it took them a few hours of running from building to building to get to the warehouse district.

"Here we are." Luffy said.

"Did Shanks mention which warehouse it is?"

"Nope."

"May have to contact him then." He said as he pressed his ear piece. "Oi, Shanks. Do you know which warehouse these swords are?"

_"I think it's either the 304 or the 309 warehouse."_

"At lease that narrows down to two. Thanks."

_"No problem."_

"You got that Luf-" He said when he noticed that the other wasn't there. "-fy… Damn it!" He looked around to see any sign of the other, only to see that the other was way ahead of him. "Luffy!" He said through the earpiece. "Don't run off like that!"

"I'm just looking for the right one!" He said as he found the 304 warehouse. "Seems deserted."

Zoro finally caught up with the other and looked around to see that it did look deserted. "Let's just have a quick look around before we get to searching for those swords."

"Okay!" He said as they walked around the building to find some crates and a window.

"Looks small."

"I can fit."

"Will you be okay to whatever is inside?"

"What could go wrong."

"A lot of things."

Luffy just laughed as he got onto the crates, opened the window, and went in easy. He saw that the warehouse was pretty dark even with the light coming through the window.

_"See anything?"_

"Nothing, it's too dark to see a damn thing here."

_"Be careful Luffy."_

"I know." He said as he took out what looked like an eye patch with a goggle like lens. He placed it on and moved the lens to one side, turning them on, and he was able to see. He saw some crates and what looks like a light switch. He also saw some trick wire. He really wanted to get the light switch to see what kind of place it was.

-XxX-

It took him a nearly a half an hour before he finally got to the light switch and turned it on, only to see that the whole place was a spider web of trick wire.

"Damn…"

_"What's going on in there, Luffy?"_

"The place is covered in trick wire."

_"Shit… Well, we must be in the right warehouse then."_

"Yeah… now, where can those swords be hiding?"

_"Just watch yourself, okay."_

"I will. Give me a heads up if anyone is trying to get in."

_"Will do."_

Luffy looked at the web and tried to pin point the most armed area within the mess. He usually trusted his instincts, for it was with that is how he was able to time his jumps right and where some danger is going to be. It also helped a lot to know who has what it takes to be a runner or not.

He looked at the other corner of the room and saw a curtain. He went over there, skillfully went through the web of wires, and lifted the curtain to reveal three long boxes. "Found 'em!"

_"You sure?"_

"I'm sure of it!"

_"Will you be able to get them out okay?"_

"Hmm…" He looked to see that the wires would make it difficult to do so if he carried all three. "I may have to make a few trips, but it'll be okay."

_"Is there anything I should do?"_

"Just make sure no one tries to get in okay? It'll be bad if I get caught."

_"Right. Just let me know if I can help in anyway."_

"Will do." He said as he grabbed one of the boxes and skillfully made his way out of the web, placed the box under the window, and went back to get the other two the same way.

_"Luffy, we got company."_ Zoro warned.

"I just got the last box. Meet me by the window to catch them."

_"Okay, better do it quick, they're unlocking the doors."_

Luffy got to the window still, where he poked his head out to see his partner standing by. "Here's the first one." He said as he handed the long box to the other, who grabbed it and set in on the crate beside him, and readied for the next one.

-XxX-

Once that was done, Luffy was about to get out as well when he heard one of the men shout.

"Where are the boxes!"

"Uh oh." He said as he got out of the building, Zoro catching him as he fell. "We better get out of here." He said.

"Way ahead of you." Zoro said as he grabbed the boxes under his arm and they ran away from the warehouse and got onto the top of another warehouse. "It's going to be difficult carrying these boxes if we're going to be climbing a lot."

"Yeah…" He said as he scratched his head for a good way to transport them.

But Zoro was ahead of him with that. He placed the boxes down and opened them to see the sheathed Japanese swords. And for a strange moment thought he had seen the same swords somewhere before.

"What are you doing Zoro?" Luffy asked.

"This…" He said as he placed the swords on the belt loop on his right side, which also had a nostalgic sensation to him.

"Cool! That's a great idea!"

"We better keep moving." He said as they ran from one warehouse building to the next before getting to the higher buildings.

-XxX-

"That was easy." Luffy said.

"Too easy…" Zoro agreed.

"Must be idiots or something to make it look difficult."

"Maybe…"

"What's the matter Zoro?" He asked as they stopped at one rooftop.

Zoro shook his head. "It's nothing."

Luffy tilted his head, studying the man before going up and patted his shoulder. "Whatever you're worrying about now, remember our promise, okay?"

Zoro managed a smile and nodded.

"You're right."

"Of course I am!"

This made the other laugh as they headed back to their base.

-XxX-

A few hours later, once everyone made it back okay except for Franky and Robin, they waited for the call back on the person who sent the two to retrieve the swords. But there was no response, but payment was made with a note.

_The swords don't belong to me, but they don't belong to them either. They belong to whoever can master the three sword style_.

"Huh? Three sword style?" Sanji said. "Now that's something I like to see. Does the person have to have a third arm to do it?"

"I can't believe an anonymous customer would put those two at risk to get something that never belonged to him to begin with!" Nami said, obviously pissed.

"Aw well! It was fun!" Luffy said. "Right Zoro?"

Zoro didn't respond as he looked at the swords that were on the display case.

"Zoro?" Luffy repeated.

"Roronoa-san? Are you okay?" Vivi asked.

Zoro reached his hand out to grab one, the white one, and unsheathed it a little to see the blade reflecting his eyes.

"You better not damage that, Zoro, we may sell those."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because, Luffy, no one here knows swordsmanship, let alone hold one."

"Zoro's holding one though." Luffy said as he pointed.

"As if that oaf can use it." Sanji said as he had a ball in his hand. "Oi! Marimo! Pay attention when someone is talking about you!" He threw the ball at the other's head, only to be sliced in half, missing the intended target by a mile.

There was silence in the room.

"Sugoui!" Luffy broke it with an excited call. "You can use swords?!"

"I…" Zoro said, surprised he did that. "I don't know…" He looked at the blade before sheathing it back. "I guess I do…"

"Then those are yours!"

Nami bopped him in the head. "Baka! You can't just say that. Plus he has to know the three sword style to have all of them. However that works."

Luffy pouted as he rubbed the sore spot. "Why are you so mean, Nami!" And thus started the argument.

Shanks looked at the green haired man, who still held the white Japanese sword in his hand, delicately and respectfully, as if he once did hold one before. "We'll put those swords on hold for now." He said, causing everyone to be silent. "It's still so early to decide the fate of these wonderful treasures." He smiled. "Besides, they look good in this room."

"And we didn't have to purchase them." Usopp added.

"Well…" Nami said. "I guess they do look okay here."

"Yay! The Japanese swords are staying with us!" Luffy cheered, which he was bopped on the head again by the young woman.

"Get to bed you!"

"Itte!" Luffy said as he and Zoro walked out of the room. "I still think you should have those swords."

"Huh?"

"You had that same look when we were getting away. You obviously know how to use them."

Zoro sighed. "I do feel… balanced when I had them with me. But why? Especially since I'm a Guard Droid."

"So? Doesn't mean you don't know how to use them."

"Maybe it was programmed or something…"

"Then why are you hesitating if it was programmed?"

Zoro paused to think about that. "Good question… Plus… I think I may have seen those swords before."

"You used those same swords?"

"I don't know…"

Luffy stood in front of the other just before they entered their shared room. "Zoro, if you don't know about something, then don't worry about it. There are some things that are worth worrying over, but this isn't one of them." He said with a smile. "If you think you may have used them before, then don't force yourself to remember. Who knows, maybe you did have some experience before being thrown out."

"Maybe…" Zoro said as he still wondered, but he let it go for now as he realized how tired he felt.

-XxX-

Unknown to the two, Shanks was hiding in the shadows, listening in. He left his spot and went to his room, and went up to the desk with a control panel. "Robin, Franky, you present?"

_"Yes Shanks-san?"_ Robin responded.

"What have you got on Zoro?"

_"Hardly anything at all. It seems that Luffy was right about that man trying to dispose of the body of what he tried to create."_

"Can you do a bit more research?"

_"Sure, what kind?"_

"Find any record of a person that uses three sword style with Japanese swords."

_"Three sword?"_

"Yes… and, if there's nothing, try using Zoro's full name."

_"You think there could be something here?"_

"I don't know. That's why I have you."

_"True. I'll let you know what I've found out."_

"Keep in touch."

_"You do the same."_

With that, connection was down and he looked at his desk in deep thought.

-XxX-

Somewhere else in the city, the phone rang and the man picked it up. "Moshi, moshi."

_"You bastard! You sent those Runners to retrieve those swords."_

"They're not yours to begin with."

_"So!? What makes you think they're any better?"_

"Because there's one who can."

_"Are you crazy!? There's no way that's possible!"_

The man grinned. "Watch and find out." He said as he hung up the phone. "It's only a matter of time now…"


	7. Swords

Chapter 7: Swords

#-+-#

During the night, Zoro couldn't sleep. He felt tired, but not enough to be sleepy. He kept thinking about the swords and where he might've seen them. He knew he shouldn't worry like Luffy had said. But he couldn't let it go. He sighed as he tried closing his eyes again, but he kept visualizing him using the swords in his hands and one in his mouth, cutting down faceless opponents. He would open his eyes and find out that he only dozed off for fifteen minutes. He really should sleep, but he couldn't with these thoughts buzzing around in his mind.

"Zoro?"

He looked at where the voice was coming from.

"Aren't you tired at all?" Luffy asked, obviously still a bit sleepy.

"I couldn't sleep." He admitted.

Luffy got up and saw the time. "It's four o' clock in the morning…"

"I know…"

"Let's go on the roof."

"Huh?"

"We'll be able to see the sun rise in another hour or so."

"It'll be freezing cold though."

"Not if we make hot cocoa."

"You know Sanji will try to kill you if you even stepped into the kitchen."

"What he won't know won't kill him." He said with a giggle. "And he can't kill me."

"That's true." Zoro said as he got up as well. "So, you still want to sleep another hour?"

"I'm starting to wake up though."

"Okay then. Well, we better get something warm if we're going to see the sunrise."

Luffy nodded excitedly as he got out, ran to the drawers, grabbed some warm clothing, threw some to Zoro, and started to get dressed.

Zoro turned away as he got dressed, and once that was done, he followed the other to the kitchen, where they had a time looking for the cocoa, while also trying not to make too much of a racket.

-XxX-

Once they did find the cocoa, they set the mugs out, Luffy put the cocoa powder in, and both waited for the water to boil, which then Zoro poured the steaming water into the mugs and went up to the roof, where it was still dark.

"What's been on your mind?" Luffy asked.

"Just those swords again." Zoro said, finding that telling the other the truth seemed to make him feel more at ease. "Every time I close my eyes, I see myself holding those same swords and cutting down every opponent that was in my way. Then I would wake up fifteen minutes later and wonder about it."

"Must be bugging the hell out of you, huh?"

"Like you wouldn't believe."

"I had the same problem when my brother left."

"Your brother?"

Luffy nodded. "He was my partner up about three years ago." He looked at his steaming mug of cocoa. "He left because he was pursuing someone. Someone who murdered their partner and ran off with something valuable. No one knows what it is, but Ace wanted to make sure that he gets the guy and get him to pay up for his crime."

"And he hasn't catched him yet?"

Luffy shook his head. "No news of it yet. With us Runners, we get information in a very short amount of time." He blew on his cocoa before continuing. "The thing is, the guy that he's chasing, belonged to a different organization group called the White Beards. But the guy that runs that did help Ace out when I was bedridden for a few weeks."

"Bedridden?"

"It was an explosion and I was lucky to only get the small force from it. But it could've gone worse if I wasn't able to get out. Then I was thrown around a lot because of the blast to some industrial stuff… Then I don't remember what happened afterwards, but when I woke up, everyone was really happy to see me. I must've scared them…"

Zoro watched the other with a kind of new respect. "Shit… I had no idea…"

"You never asked. Though, I don't like talking about it either. But I can tell you since you're my partner."

"What will happen if your brother does come back?"

"Then he'll either join White Beards or help Shanks. But I think he's going to be in White Beards."

"He can do that?"

"Yep, it's nothing new." Luffy said as he took a sip of his cocoa. "Some leave one group for another because they can't handle the group, needed to branch out, or just want to join in something that can help better themselves. Ace will join that group because the leader treats him like a son and he has full respect to the whole organization. But overall, he just likes that group."

"But what about you?"

"Huh? What about me?"

"Were you okay with this?"

"Of course! I want my brother happy, and I have my own group already, it's just that Shanks is overlooking it for now. But soon he has to go back to his group once they return from the other cities."

"Huh? Why was Shanks group in different cities?"

Luffy chuckled. "To spread the Runner's idealology."

"No way…"

"Way." Luffy said as he looked at the horizon, only to see a bit of a change of color. "It's about to come up!" He said excitedly.

Zoro looked as well and just looked at the horizon until the light nearly blinded him. He heard the other giggle as he looked again, and he had to admit, it was pretty amazing sight.

"If I do ever get out of this city…" Luffy said. "I would like to take the group to a city that's by the ocean."

"The ocean?"

Luffy nodded. "I've always seen pictures of it, but I wanted to see it one day. But I think it would be better to hold a base and live there. That way we can always have a great view of the ocean."

Zoro looked at the other before taking a gulp of his cocoa. "Sounds really great." He said.

"I'm glad you agreed. I mentioned it to the others, and they seem to like it as well. Plus Vivi doesn't have to go such a long way to get to see her family."

"You've found a city already?"

Luffy nodded. "Yeah… it's called Louge City." He smiled. "If you think we're amazing Runners, you should've heard the King of Runners."

"King of Runners?"

Luffy nodded. "Louge City was where he was born and died. And Shanks learned from him."

"Just how far back does this Runner's thing go?"

Luffy shrugged. "Who knows. I just want to be in the place where the buildings are just like this city, with a great ocean view."

Zoro blinked as the sun kept coming up. He then looked back to seeing the sunrise. "I hope its soon. I want to see this place myself."

Luffy looked at his partner and smiled. "Yeah!"

-XxX-

Both finished their mugs of cocoa and were about to head in when Zoro seemed to be looking at a particular area.

"What's wrong?"

Zoro didn't answer as he waited before going in. "I thought there was something out there."

"Really?"

"It could be just me though." He said as they caught a whiff of breakfast being made.

"Morning Sanji!" Luffy called as he tackled the man from behind.

"Luffy! Get off of me!"

"When will breakfast be done? I'm hungry!"

"Soon, now get the hell off!"

Luffy did and headed to Zoro when there was a loud bang from the roof.

"The hell was that?" Sanji asked as he ran out to see what was going on.

"I don't know." Luffy said when another bang was heard, this time the sound of something heavy falling to the ground was heard and someone entering went into the meeting room.

"Don't move!" Said a group of cops as they held their guns out.

"Shit!" Sanji said as he complied.

Luffy and Zoro did as well before the group entered to see what was going on as well, which they followed the order as well.

Zoro, however felt a tug in his mind as he glanced at the displayed swords and knew he was able to get them fast enough before anyone got hurt, but he also know that these men were cops. And that means media will confirm their already framed name to be true. But upon closer look, these men lacked something that will label them as the law. He didn't wait any longer as he shoved Luffy down to the ground to avoid being hit by the bullets, grabbed the first two swords to deflect the bullets before getting the last one, placed it in his mouth, and charged towards the imposters and, within a blink of an eye, the imposters were down.

The group couldn't believe what they had just saw and had to double take on what just happened.

Luffy was the first to recover as he ran up to Zoro. "You were so awesome Zoro! So you can use the swords!"

Zoro took the sword with the white handle out of his mouth and stared at the bodies. "I guess I can."

"That means those swords are yours for good, right Shanks?" He looked over at his guardian, who has yet picked his jaw off the floor. In fact everyone was shocked. "You guys look weird." He said as he smelled something burning. "Uh, Sanji, breakfast…"

"Crap!" Sanji recovered as he ran into the kitchen, shouting profanities while he was at it.

"I can't believe it…" Nami said as she and Vivi fell to their knees.

"We have a swordsman to our group…" Usopp said.

"Is there any other groups with swordsmen?" Chopper asked.

"I can fence, but nothing at that level." Brook said.

"Well…" Shanks said as he gathered himself together. "There's not much else we can do." He smiled. "Consider this a bit of a raise in your salary, Roronoa-san. For saving us."

"That really isn't necessary…" Zoro said, a bit uncomfortable with all the stares heading his way.

"Oh well! Tough luck!" Shanks said with good humor. "Oi! When will breakfast be done!?"

"I have to remake the damn thing because of those guys! Oi! Luffy! Get your ass in here! You're eating the burned ones!"

"Yosha!" Luffy said.

"You eat things that are burned." Zoro said.

"And off the floor!" He said with a smile.

He shook his head. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

"Yep! Aren't you hungry too?"

"I'll wait for mine."

Luffy shrugged. "You're loss." He said as he ran in.

"Whatever." He said as he sat at the table, after sheathing the swords in.

"We're going to have to find you a belt to keep those on you without them falling." Nami said.

"Yeah…" He said as everyone assembled to the table and waited for Sanji to finish making breakfast and start their daily work, except for him and Luffy, who didn't like the idea of being grounded again.


	8. Museum Rescue

Chapter 8: Museum Rescue

#-+-#

For a week Luffy and Zoro didn't get a chance to go out and run, but when the news about the murder was slowly becoming old news, as well as some evidence proving that they wouldn't do it, they were off to run on top of tall buildings and causing havoc.

"Now this is more like it!" Luffy said as he sat down on a steel beam of a building that wasn't fully built yet.

"Does feel good to get out." Zoro agreed as he stared at the city. "Man… how many people take this for granted?"

"Too many… Then there's us that enjoy it." Luffy said as he got up. "Well, we can't stay in the same place for long."

"That's true." He said as he got up. "Where to?"

Luffy shrugged. "I don't know, we weren't given an assignment or anything."

Zoro thought about any places he could remember seeing and see if his partner is willing to go up to it. "We could try and sneak into a museum." He said. "I heard one of them is displaying some old artifacts that were brought up from sunken ships."

"Really!?" Luffy said excitedly. "Well let's go! I wanna see the artifacts!"

'Should've kept my mouth shut.' Zoro thought as he chased after Luffy. "Oi! Do you know where you're going?"

"There's about five museums here, one just bound to have the artifacts!"

"Then we would have to find the one with the most security in it."

"Yep!"

Zoro shook his head as they jump from one building to the next.

-XxX-

By the time they arrived on one building, they looked to see another building with a lot of people and security, as well as a huge banner promoting the artifacts.

"This is going to be so good!" Luffy said as he couldn't keep himself still.

"Take it easy there partner. We have t figure a way in without causing chaos."

"Right." He said as he looked around the building for any good entrance way. "The likely entrance is on the roof, since we don't have money to pay at the front."

"Obviously."

"But there's going to be security guards and cameras."

"Obviously."

"We can fight the guards and disable the security cameras… But that would raise alarm." He said as he thought about it with a pout.

Zoro couldn't help but smile at the other's attempt of making a complex plan and try to make it simple.

_"Zoro, Luffy, come in."_ Shanks said through their ear piece.

"Yeah Shanks?" Luffy said.

_"Are you at the museum?"_

"Yeah, the one with the sunken ship artifacts." Zoro said and wondered if it just turned into their assignment.

_"Oh good! Are you in the building?"_

"In the process of figuring out the best way without causing a commotion." Luffy said.

_"Great!"_

"What's going on Shanks?" Zoro asked.

_"Well, I just got this assignment a moment ago and it seems that there's a kidnapper in the crowd with the mayor's niece."_

"The mayor's niece?"

_"Yes. Her name is East Rika. She's about eight years old, brown hair in loose pigtails, brown eyes, and was last seen wearing a blue skirt and white shirt with the school logo on the sleeve."_

"The kidnapper might've changed her clothes to be less recognizable." Zoro reasoned. "Also the bastard may have changed her hair style or covering up all together."

"But we are looking for a little girl." Luffy said as he looked at the crowd. "And it doesn't look like there are a lot of kids around."

_"You may be right, but I also think this guy may try to be out of sight if he wants the ransom."_

"Yeah."

_"Well, good luck finding this bastard. And I hope it's not too late for the girl."_

"She's still alive." Luffy said with certainty.

"As long as things are smooth with the bastard." Zoro added.

"We better be extra careful then."

"Right."

_"Shanks out."_ Shanks said as connection was down.

"Well… We still have no idea how to get in without hurting those guards…"

"And I doubt they'll listen to us." Zoro said as he came up with an idea. "Luffy, contact Nami. She may know an underground way to getting in."

"Yeah!" Luffy said as he did just that. "Nami?"

_"Yeah Luffy?"_

"You free?"

_"Yeah, Vivi and I are just resting a bit. What's going on?"_

"Zoro and I just got a retrieval assignment of a kidnapped girl. We're outside the museum that the kidnapper is possibly waiting. But we need to get into the museum, and it looks like the rooftop isn't an option…"

_"Okay, give me a moment."_ Nami said.

The two waited for a minute before Nami gave them the coordinates and set out.

-XxX-

They went through the building they were currently in, went into the basement, into the generator, and went up to the vents to get into the control room of the museum. Once they were in, they made sure that there wasn't any cameras, which there were, in the room and continued in the vents until they went up to one of the levels of the museum and went out without notice.

"That was fun." Luffy said as he looked at the crowded floor. "Now… if the kidnapper were here, were would he hide but still see?"

Zoro looked around as well and he thought he heard a whimper of a small child and looked to see a kid with a boyish hat and oversized clothes. Something a boy would wear. "Oi." He said quietly as he pointed out to his partner.

"You think so?"

"One of the ways a kidnapper with a child at random would do. Disguise the kid. In this case make the girl look like a boy to make it difficult to suspect."

"Right. And at this age it will be hard to know if the kids a boy or girl because they have a similar physic."

"Yeah." He said as both started to follow the man in a brown leather jacket, dark worn jeans, and a black baseball cap.

They also kept their distance, not wanting to give the man any reason to take action.

The child looked behind, and it was definitely the girl they were looking for as she was pulled harshly to keep up with the man.

The two looked at each other and nodded before going in separate ways, but still kept their eye on the man and child.

The man headed to the elevator and Luffy was closest to it as he managed to enter with the man and child in the crowd, while putting his straw-hat on so the man wouldn't see his face.

-XxX-

Zoro wasn't able to get there, but he heard clicks in his ear piece and went up the stairs, which was clear for the most part and started to run to the number of clicks that meant the floors. He went up to the fifth floor, the last before the roof, and heard Luffy's voice.

"Zoro, he's heading for the stairs, make yourself scarce."

"Got it." He said as he went down to the shadows and waited until he saw the man and the child go through the door and went up. He quietly followed as he whispered through the ear piece. "You can go through now, but make sure you don't let your presence be known. I'm in pursuit right now."

"Be careful, I think he's armed."

"Got it." He said as he followed a few feet behind the two as they reached the door to the roof, the man took out a gun, went through the door, gunshot fire was heard, and then there was silence.

He went up to the door and opened the door, only to dodge the bullet.

"Take one more step and the girl gets it!"

"Whoa, whoa! I'm just the janitor here." He lied. "What's going on?" He played the part out when he heard his partner behind him and waited.

"Get out of here so I can see you!"

Luffy got the katanas off as his partner went out.

"You don't look like a janitor." The man said with the gun to the girl's head.

"I was just getting in. And I guess some of the other janitors thought it would be funny to hide my clothes up on the roof again."

The man looked at the man before he pointed the gun at him. "You, turn around and face the wall."

Zoro complied as he thought about the possible ways to get the mad man away from the girl. And he thought a distraction was in favor. "So… What's going on here? That your kid there?"

"No! She's just a brat whose family destroyed my life!"

"Really? Sounds serious. What did you do before?"

"None of your business!"

'Something bad.' He thought as he continued to talk. "Well it must be really good if it was ruined so badly."

"Shut up! You don't know anything about me!"

"Well that's why I'm talking to you. I wanna know."

"And why would I talk to you?"

Zoro thought up a likely story. "Well, I'm actually taking this job as my probation. I wasn't even supposed to be here today, but I have nothing better to do at home."

"Probation? For what?"

"Breaking and entering, and accused for first degree murder."

"Really?" The man sounded interested. "And why did you do that?"

"Money. I was so flat broke that it's not even funny. And I had this nagging girlfriend who kept complaining about not getting this or that."

The man laughed. "I hear ya! Those damn bitches think they're the masters of the universe."

"That's the thing, a lot of those bitches are starting to be like that. Almost to the point where they don't really need us anymore. They'll just have each other for company."

The man laughed even more. "Right on brother! Come and join me!"

Zoro turned and saw that the man was completely at ease and the gun away from the girl. He went up to the man and continued his act. "Damn man, this kid doesn't look like she's old enough to walk."

"Yeah… but her family is loaded. Hey, what do you say we split the dough, eh? What do you say?"

Zoro had a thoughtful look on before smiling. "I do need to pay off a few people, but then I may be sent in for life…"

"No worries, just dye that hair of yours and get some colored contacts, change your name and we'll be out of here before you know it."

"Aw! I was never the kind to run and hide." Zoro said in a joking manner. "I'm more of an action guy."

The man laughed. "You sure do look like the type."

"So… you waiting for the family or something?"

"I'm waiting to see if this brat's family is going to pay up with the dough, send it by helicopter and escape that way."

Zoro whistled. "That's something. But wouldn't they know who you are?"

The man laughed as he wrapped an arm around the man. "That's the thing. As soon as I get the money and the pilot hostage, I'm going to pop a few into the girl and whoever brought the dough, you dig me?"

"Oh! I see…" Zoro said as he grabbed the hand with the gun and broke the wrist under his grip. "Sorry, but I don't agree with you." The gun dropped from the shocked hand. "Luffy! Now!" He called as Luffy got out through the door, ran towards the girl and took her away from the man as the other dealt with him.

"Fucking asshole! You tricked me!"

"Yeah, and you're a sleaze bag for hurting a little girl." He said as he punched the guy, knocking him out.

By then a helicopter appeared and they waited until it landed and a woman came out.

"Mommy!" The girl cried as Luffy let her go and watched at the two embraced.

"Rika!" The woman said as she embraced her daughter.

"Let's go." Luffy said to Zoro, who tied the man up.

"Yeah. Our job here is done." He said as they were about to go back into the museum when the woman called out.

"Wait!"

They stopped and looked at the woman.

"There must be something I can repay you with!"

Both smiled.

"Don't worry about it." Zoro said.

"We got our reward." Luffy said. "Take care now!" He added before they ran to the door and went down the stairs to the basement and went through the way out to the next building and headed to the next building and headed back to their base.

-XxX-

"Great job you two!" Shanks said. "I just got world from the mayor, who got from his daughter, about the success."

"It wasn't much of a challenge." Zoro said.

"Zoro was a great actor!" Luffy said. "He completely played that guy like an idiot!"

"I heard." Shanks said with a laugh. "The girl said what had happened. I'm impressed Roronoa-san."

Zoro shrugged. "All in a day's work."

"Well! We'll be expecting the reward tomorrow."

Luffy sighed. "But I didn't get to see the sunken ship's artifacts!"

"We'll see them another day." Zoro said.

"Really?!" Luffy said hopefully.

"Really." Zoro said as the other chuckled.

The others came in and chaos went back up in the group.

"Where's Robin and Franky?" Usopp asked. "They've been gone awhile."

"They're doing a special mission." Shanks said. "Although I did expect them to be back with the report soon. But then I can't rush Robin too much, since it is related to some kind of history."

"Oh, okay." Chopper said. "That would explain it."

"Yohohoho! Who's up for a song!?"

"Me! Me!" Luffy said as Usopp and Chopper joined.

Zoro leaned back on the couch and took a nap as the activity was at its usual chaos.

-XxX-

Somewhere in the city, the man looked out of the window of the brightly lit city as he received a call.

"Moshi, moshi…" He said as he waited for a moment. "I see… It seems we have to do something even more with him." After another moment he responded. "He should start remembering small pieces of him memory by now…" He smiled as he sat down. "If he resists, then keep pushing him. He can't hide who he is for long." He hung up the phone and picked up a glass of some caramel colored liquid.

"Soon Roronoa… Soon you will remember and come back to serve your purpose." He chuckled.


	9. Memory?

Chapter 9: Memory?

#-+-#

That night, everyone was sound asleep but Zoro seemed to toss and turn in his sleep while Luffy seemed unaffected by it.

Zoro panted as he seemed to be running a marathon as he opened his eyes.

~X*X~

"Zoro!"

He heard his name being called but saw that he wasn't in the room that he shared with Luffy.

"Zoro!"

He looked behind him to see a man that was familiar to him. "Saga?"

"You okay? You seem out of it." Said the man with violet platinum hair and one dead arm while his grey eyes seem to sparkle.

"Yeah… just thinking…"

"You've been doing that a lot." He said as he patted the other's shoulder. "Come on, we have an assignment."

"Already? Jeeze! We barely have time to breathe!"

The man laughed as he slapped the other's head. "Come on! How bad can this one be?"

"That's what you always say, and we end up in some kind of jam."

"With that attitude we will!"

"That's because you end up jinxing us!"

"Me? It's your attitude that jinxes us!"

"Forget it!" He said as they walked to the streets late in the evening. "Just taking three assignments in one night is crazy!"

"What did you expect. We're the top rated assassins in the east side of this city."

Zoro looked up and saw someone jump from one building to the next. "That's just insane…"

"What?"

"Those Runners."

"Ah yeah? They're getting around."

"Literally."

"I bet you can be like that."

"You know I can't."

The man sighed. "Yeah… damn contract deal."

"Why the hell did we become assassins anyway?"

"I don't know… We were practically founded and threw in before we could make up our own minds about it."

"Yeah…" Zoro said as he could barely remember a time when he didn't kill someone without reason. "Do you think we're going to be next?"

"Huh?"

"Come on Saga, you know what I mean."

Saga sighed as he looked at the dark alley that they turned to. "We're the best they've got, there's no way they'll kill us just because we're not some mindless drones they expect us to be."

"Well then they know not to pick up a couple of ten year olds next time."

Saga laughed as he looked up to see another Runner going from one building to the next. "I wonder what their life must be like."

"Runners? I've heard that they do some kind of retrieval business."

"Sounds simple. And it doesn't require a lot of killing it sounds like."

"It doesn't." He said as he looked around the alley. "But I guess both of these things have something in common."

"What's that?"

"Both have to have some kind of assignment ordered by some anonymous bastard and we do the dirty work."

"That's true." Saga said. "Oh well. What can we do? Besides doing the samurai suicide of honor."

"Like that will happen. You know I have too much pride to go to that level of desperation."

Saga laughed as they reached to the end of the alley to another street, only to wait in the shadows.

"So, what was the assignment?"

"Just to wait here and look for a man with a red coat."

"Red? Then is it a confrontation for information or do we kill?"

"Didn't say. But it should be easy."

Zoro sighed. "I'm really tired…"

"When aren't you? You sleep most of the time."

"Oi…"

x

Both stayed silent for a half an hour before seeing someone walk down the street.

Saga signaled the other to move out and they casually walked out of the alley and saw the man in red.

Zoro felt uneasy about the man and walked slower, but the other still kept at his pace eyes targeted on the man. He wanted to call out to the man, but he had to make sure that he didn't let the man know they were together in this and stayed in a slower pace until he saw his partner get close enough to the man, only to see the man inhumanly stabbed Saga with a hidden knife and saw his partner go down.

"Xeon…" Saga managed to say before being thrown to the side.

"Xeon?!" Zoro said as he looked at the man in red. 'Our boss!?' He thought as he saw the assassin's emblem under the red coat and saw the man's face, which was shadowed to him, and took out his katanas. "What the hell!?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Xeon said. "I'm terminating you."

"Why?!"

"'Why?' You ask?" Why it's simple, I do not want a rebellious assassin in my group. And I figured since you will easily kill any of the other assassins, I've decided to face you."

Zoro smiled like a predator. "I've always did want to fight you one day…" He said as he positioned himself to attack. "But I didn't want my only friend to die when I do."

"Gomen, but these things cannot always go according to plan."

"Obviously…" He said as he lunged in to attack the man and a battle started.

Zoro used his famous move on the man, which was blocked, and switched it to something that some would say would describe as being in the middle of a tornado, before charging in like a bull.

Xeon seemed to have known the other's moves by heart as he kept missing the other's attacks like it was nothing.

x

After fifteen minutes, Zoro panted as he stared at the man who didn't break a sweat.

"Is that all you can really do?" Xeon said as he got his gun out. "How pathetic."

Zoro grinned as he charged again.

"A fool I see." He said as he fired the gun, but it missed the man completely by a mile as he felt the blow that can only be described as the colossal forces go through him before falling onto the ground, and lay there with soulless eyes.

Zoro sighed as he put away his katanas as he stared at his old boss and Saga. "I'm sorry…" He said as he went up to his dead friend and picked him up and walked down the street to find a proper burial when he heard someone clapping.

"Splendid work." Said another man as he walked out of the shadows. "I have heard many rumors about your abilities. But none can describe what I've just witnessed.

"Who the hell are you?"

"You could say I'm your old boss's boss."

"Why are you here?"

"Oh… I've decided to take a stroll out and heard that one of my top subordinates was going to eliminate his top assassins just for having a self identity."

"What? You want to die as well?"

The man chuckled. "I'm just passing through. I admit that I admire your skill as a swordsman and as an assassin, but I'll give you time to think it over."

"Are you giving me a job position or something?"

"Yes… is there a problem?"

"Yeah… I quit."

There was a dead silence when the man chuckled.

"What's so funny!?"

"Oh nothing… I figured you would say that… And I can understand that…" He said as he snapped his fingers. "However… I won't let your skills go to waste."

"You're going to kill me? Is that it?" Zoro said with a grin of his own.

"Not completely kill you." The man said as he turned and walked away before snapping once more. "Just enough that you would start knocking on death's door."

That's when gun fire was heard and –

~X*X~

Zoro woke up, knocking Luffy down to his lap as he shot up.

"Zoro!" Luffy said as he got up and placed both hands on either side of the man's face. "Are you okay? Sounded like you had a nightmare."

Zoro panted a bit before taking deep breaths. "I don't know…" He finally said as he fell back down onto the bed. "I don't know what the hell I should call it."

Luffy looked concerned as he crawled up beside the man and laid down close to the other. "Can you tell me about it? It may help."

Zoro didn't think it would, but he let it have a go and explained everything that he could remember about the dream.

"That sounded like it could've been your past."

Zoro lightly bonked the other's head. "Baka. That would mean that I was human, not a Guard Droid."

"Oh… right…" Luffy said as he had a thoughtful look. "Maybe you could've been a Guard Droid when you were an assassin."

"But the guy who threw me out was his first one."

"Oh right…" Luffy pouted. "Well then I don't know!" He looked at the other and smiled. "Oh well! Whatever it was, I'm glad that Zoro is here with me now."

Zoro blinked as he could feel his face warm up slightly.

Luffy looked at the alarm clock and groaned. "Man… only two in the morning?" He placed his face on the pillow and said something that the other couldn't hear.

"Sorry about that." Zoro said, thinking that his 'nightmare' might've waken the other up.

Luffy looked up with a smile. "It's no problem. We're partners, we can tell each other practically everything."

Zoro blinked as he turned to his side to face the other. "I guess, but there has to be a limit to how much we could tell each other."

Luffy blinked before sticking out his tongue. "I would usually know what you want to tell me and what you don't."

"How?"

"I just do. Mostly because I have enough practice to know the signs."

"Signs?"

"Yeah. Like when you look lost and concerned about being my partner from the beginning, I know how to talk my way to get you to open up and solve that issue away."

Zoro grinned as he ruffled the other's hair. "You little bastard."

Luffy giggled as he yawned. "Better get back to sleep."

"Aye, who knows what kind of day we'll have."

"That's for sure. But that's why I love being a Runner…" He yawned again. "You just never know what you'll find…" He said as he drifted off to sleep.

Zoro tucked the other in as he took a moment to look at the peaceful look the other had on and wondered about the man in his dream. 'Did I really know a man named Saga?' He thought. 'All of that seemed way too real to be something made up.'

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt the other's hand unconsciously gripped his and he couldn't help but smile as he closed his eyes and fell back to a deep sleep.

-XxX-

In Shank's room, he woke up to the sound of his cell going crazy. He searched in the dark before grabbing it and looked at the caller ID before looking fully awake and answering it.

"Hai! Robin… You found something?"

_"Yes… Roronoa Zoro was once an assassin to a group that was long since disappeared from the society. His partner, Saga, was found dead in the street on the east side of the city. The initial cause of death was stabbing through the heart with a concealed weapon. But they also found bullets in his body, meaning that someone was also there to take those hits."_

"Zoro-san…"

_"It's possible. He is the only one on record that I'm able to pull up that uses the three sword style."_

"If that's true… then why is he considered a Guard Droid. Even Luffy, or even that scientist that threw Zoro-san out would know about him being human."

_"That's what we're investigating now. But so far there's no possible way of him being a duplicate, because you mentioned that he may have recalled using those swords."_

"Yes… A Guard Droid wouldn't remember anything in the past if his owner erased it."

_"But a human being will."_

Shanks sighed. "The crew are wondering where you are. Save the other stuff for later and come back. Otherwise we're going to have a rescue mission for you two."

_"Okay, I'm sure talking to Zoro-san about some things would help open up to who he really is."_

"Just try not to push it… We don't know what he's capable of… I don't even know if he know it himself either."


	10. Close Calls

Chapter 10: Close Calls

#-+-#

The next morning everyone was up and enjoyed breakfast when Robin and Franky finally dropped in.

"Robin! Franky!" Luffy cheered. "Where the heck were you guys!?"

"Oh, researching. You know me and history. It's my only addicting drug I can't fully ignore."

"Oh, okay!" Luffy said as he stuffed his face with pancakes that he swiped off of Usopp's plate.

"Oi! Luffy! Those were mine you pig!"

Zoro just chuckled as he enjoyed his portion before the other could eye it.

Robin studied the man for a moment before announcing that she was going to rest.

"I'm sorry I won't be joining breakfast." She said.

"Don't worry, Robin-chawn!" Sanji said as he did a strange noddle dance. "I'm sure whatever you had to do is completely exhausting!"

"It was…" She said as she and Franky headed to their room.

"Seems pretty damn normal to me." Franky said.

"Indeed…" She said. "But I wonder just how he could be human and a Guard Droid. Especially since it was impossible."

"I'm not completely sure about this as well." He said as he sighed. "The only way to know is to open him up, but I don't think Luffy-Bro would like that idea one bit."

"Yes… We would have to wait before we can be sure." She said with a yawn. "Maybe some sleep may help answer this."

"You don't really believe that kind of thing do you?"

"Never killed anyone to try."

He sighed and shook his head before entering their room and just went on the bed and immediately fell asleep.

She giggled at the sight of her partner before joining as well and fell asleep as well.

-XxX-

Back out in the awakening world, the groups went their separate ways and waited for any word on their assignments.

"Race you to that building!" Luffy announced to Zoro as he pointed to a tall building of some company.

"You're on!" Zoro said as they started their race, both even in speed and durability of the obstacles in their way.

-XxX-

By the time they reached to the roof top of the building, they were tired and worn out and didn't bother arguing who got there first.

"That was fun!" Luffy said with a laugh.

"Yeah… That was…" Zoro said with some pants as they enjoyed the breeze that came in.

"I'm hungry."

"I am too. All that running really did a number." He said as he got up. "Well, do we know any place to get food?"

Luffy got up as well and looked around the buildings below them before shrugging. "We could sneak in to the rec room of this building for something to eat."

"You mean steal food?"

"Got any better ideas? Cause I know Sanji will kill us if we step into his kitchen."

Zoro sighed as he looked at the door. "Okay, but if we're caught before we get there, we better find a different way to get food."

"Okay!" Luffy said as both ran towards the door and ran down to the levels of stairs before trying out each floor before getting to the rec room, which there were some people in there, eating donuts.

"Excuse us." Zoro said as Luffy stole a couple and they ran out of there.

"Here Zoro!" Luffy said as he handed the other the donut.

"Thanks." He said as he took a bite as they reached to an empty elevator and pressed the up button.

"That was fun." Luffy said as he finished eating his donut, but his face was covered in some of the frosting.

"Oi, you got frosting all over your face."

"Really?" He said as he used his tongue to get any remaining frosting off of his face before the elevator stopped and they ran to get to the stairs and up to the roof.

-XxX-

From there they headed back down, only to be cornered by a helicopter.

"We got you now! You Runners!" Said a cop with a megaphone.

"Run!"

"Don't need to tell me!"

They ran with all of their ability and they were able to get away from the helicopter by entering a building and going down the elevator to the basement.

"Damn…" Zoro said as he leaned back on the wall. "That was a bit intense…"

"That's Lt. Smoker for you."

"Who?"

"Oh, he has a grudge against me."

"Why?"

"Because I'm the only 'criminal' that has ever escaped from him."

"Ah…" He said as he did some stretches.

"Yeah, and for some reason my brother really likes that guy. Don't know why though."

"Like him?"

"Yeah. More like a crush."

"You're brother likes guys?"

"Just that one." Luffy said as he leaned back against the wall. "When he told me, I thought he had finally lost his mind. But then he told me what he liked about the guy and I supported him. He hasn't told the guy his feelings, because, well… he's a cop and he's a Runner."

"A forbidden love affair."

"Kinda like Romeo and Juliet."

"You know that story?"

"Who hasn't? It's a perfect romantic tragedy in English history."

Zoro looked at the other as soon as the doors opened to the basement. "I'll never get you."

Luffy stuck out his tongue as they looked around the area. "Where to now?"

"You tell me…" He said as they walked around a bit before feeling something rumbling underneath them. "What was that about?"

"A subway."

"Huh?"

"There are subways that run under some buildings. This must be one of them."

"Are we going to take a subway then?"

Luffy smiled. "It's been awhile since I was subway surfing."

"Subway surfing?"

"Yep! You'll love it!" He said as he grabbed the other's hand. "Come on! I think I know a way to get there from here."

"Oi! Wait a sec!" Zoro called, but was dragged either way.

-XxX-

Soon they were faced with the empty tunnel.

"Uh… Luffy… Shouldn't we get to a place where we won't end up being subway kill."

"Would you relax, Zoro! I've done this before!"

"You have, but I haven't."

Luffy shushed him as he cupped his ears and there was a moment of silence before he grabbed the other and they ran up to higher ground and waited for a minute before a subway came and they timed it right and landed on the roof of the subway.

"How did you know it was coming?"

"I listened." He responded as he got up and balanced himself. "Now this is how you do subway surfing!"

Zoro watched as he saw something come up.

"Better get up and move Zoro! Or you'll get hit!" Luffy warned as he moved to the side while Zoro moved to the other side to avoid the middle.

"What the hell was that?!"

Luffy laughed. "That's part of the fun! You have to avoid hitting the signs as you move and surf on the subway.

Zoro got it and enjoyed as well, and found himself having a lot of fun.

-XxX-

Once they were at a stop, they waited until they got down and blended in with the crowd and left the station.

Luffy laughed about the whole thing while Zoro smiled and enjoyed the day.

"Where to now?" Zoro asked when the sound of the other's stomach rumbling. "Well that answers that."

"Everybody should be back at the base by now."

"Aye."

They looked for anything on the side of the buildings that would lead them back up on the roof tops and started to head back to the base when the helicopter found them once again.

"Oh come on!" Luffy said as both ran the other way to avoid the helicopter, only for them to start running when guns were fired. "They're shooting at us!"

"Shit!" Zoro called out as they ran into a building and agreed to take the streets back to the base.

"What's his problem!? He could've killed us!" Luffy said as he pouted.

"At least we'll be okay." Zoro said as they walked up to the base's front doors and went up to the top from the elevator.

-XxX-

When they entered the meeting room, no one was there.

"That's weird. Shanks is usually here."

"Must've went out for something. I'm sure he'll be back."

"Yeah." He said as his stomach rumbled. "Okay, okay!" He headed to the kitchen and saw a bowl of apples. "Yosha!" He reached for one and took a bite of it. "Yum!"

Zoro reached for one himself and sat down on the couch, only to see a couple scratches on the teen's legs. "Oi, Luffy, where's the first aid?"

"Huh? Above the fridge, why? You're hurt?"

"No, look at your legs." He said as he went to get the first aid.

Luffy did look. "Huh? When did I get cuts on my legs?"

"Must've been from the bullets that missed you." He reasoned as he pointed to the couch. "Now sit down while I get this, okay?"

Luffy nodded as he sat down, propped his legs up, and continued to eat his apple as the other worked on cleaning and bandaging his legs properly.

-XxX-

When he was done bandaging his partner's legs, he finally settled down himself and looked to see the other was asleep. He smiled as he picked the teen up bridal style and carried him to their shared room and placed him down on the still pulled out bed and tucked him in.

That's when he thought he heard something and went out to investigate, but didn't stray too far from the room before returning and sitting by the end of the bed to see if anyone, or thing, passed by the door.

Even after a whole hour of watching, he still felt uneasy about leaving his partner alone and look for something that may not even be there to begin with.

"Zoro?"

He looked back to see that the teen seemed okay and well rested. "Hey Luffy, had a good nap?"

Luffy nodded as he climbed out of bed. "What were you doing?"

"I thought I heard something, but I didn't want to leave you alone to investigate. May be nothing at all."

"Well, I'm up. Let's see what we can find."

They did and as it turns out, it was just Shanks getting in and fell asleep on the couch.

Zoro decided to take a nap as well and Luffy joined in, since he wasn't fully awake to begin with and spent the next two hours taking a nap when they woke up violently by Nami's fist and joined everyone for dinner to talk about their day.

-XxX-

Somewhere in the city, the man shot a man down in an apartment and walked to pick up a glass and emptied it of its contents.

"Must I do everything myself. How hard is it to find him and push his mind to its limit?" He said as he exited out of the room.

When he got into his car he began to think of the alternative. 'Maybe it is almost difficult to catch him now that he's a Runner… They're very quick to avoid being caught.' He sighed. 'What must I do to get to him?'


	11. Stranger from the Past?

Happy Belated Holiday! Sorry I couldn't get this one up fast enough, but you know how it is with this time of the year. So instead of doing the replies today, I'm just going to let thes chapters go and reply next time, okay? I also have a poll that will continue until New Years Day and that will be my project for the up coming new year. I do have other fics being made along the way, but this poll would allow me to know which to focus on more and do the order from most voted to least voted. Without further ado, here are the new chapters and happy new year!

* * *

Chapter 11: Stranger from the Past?

#-+-#

It had been a good month and snow was seen in the city. On the ground, some children were enjoying throwing any clean snow they find at each other while the adults fought against the snow and wind. Above the skyscraper rooftops, there was another problem.

"But Nami!" Luffy whined as he was being held down by Franky, Sanji, and Chopper. "I don't wanna wear those boots! I like my sandals!"

Nami got a hold of one leg and shoved the boot onto that foot. "It's winter Luffy! That means the buildings are going to be a hell lot harder to get a good grip in! Not only that, you have to keep your foot covered or you'll end up losing them!" She said as she shoved the second boot on his foot.

Luffy was released to see the old black boots that he never liked wearing before looking at his partner and gave him a pouting glare.

Zoro just grinned as he polished his katanas. He knew the other hated the boots with a passion, but he also has to see the safety points of having winter clothing in their line of work.

"Okay everyone!" Shanks announced as he held up some cards. "I got your jobs for today." He handed out the cards as he added. "Since winter is a symbol of a certain time, we have to be like a miracle for our clients."

"The only thing I like about winter." Nami said. "The awards are higher and the challenge is worth some time."

"Is it really that chaotic?"

"Did you not see the stores?"

"I just like to run with the wind on me." Luffy said with a giggle.

"Like you've been doing the rest of this year?" Sanji said.

"But winter is so much different!"

"Yeah, but not in a good way." Nami said. "The winter winds are almost as bad as the raining days. They can really hinder your mobility if you hesitate even a second."

"Strong winds and icy snow can really hinder a runner's eyesight." Shanks agreed. "This is definitely a dangerous time of the year for us runners to go out to do what we do best. Retrieve."

"Not to mention that the usual poles we grab on will be so cold that we may even be stuck or slip depending on how cold and slick it is." Franky said.

"Our usual foot holds will definitely hinder our speed and usual routes." Robin said.

"Damn… Isn't there a special kind of training for those of us who aren't used to the snow version?" Usopp asked.

"Don't worry Usopp!" Luffy said. "It's just like our usual training."

"Just be aware of your surroundings in a tenfold." Vivi said.

"Besides, the veteran partners won't let the newbies get into any danger unless they ask for it." Sanji said.

"Sounds good to me." Zoro said. "I'm always up for a challenge."

Luffy smiled as excitement seemed to radiate off of him.

"At least someone won't be hindered by the change." Robin said with a giggle.

"Can we go now!?" Luffy whined.

"You can leave at any time." Shanks said with a laugh. "I just figured we go over the dangers of the weather changes before going out to the big bad world."

"Shanks!" Luffy said with a laugh as he got up. "Ready, Zoro?"

Zoro got up, swords at his side, an orange winter coat over him and they went out. "What do we have for today?"

"Retrieving an important document that some idiot left in his office." Luffy said as he looked at his card. "We have to go clear over at the other side of the city!"

"So the subway?" Zoro asked as they went onto the first rooftop with hardly any difficulty.

"Yeah! I haven't done subway surfing in a long time!" Luffy said excitedly as they entered the building, went into an elevator to the basement.

-XxX-

When they arrived to the location's area, they walked around the ground of the city and looked for the right building.

Zoro looked around the city and slowed in his walking.

"Zoro? Everything okay?"

"Yeah…" He said as he looked at a building. "Have we been here before?"

Luffy shook his head. "Nope, usually the runners in this area have this place, but they're on their vacation break. Why?"

"I think I may know this part of the city."

"Really?"

"Strange isn't it?"

Luffy shrugged. "Beats me. Maybe we've been to a part that's similar to this."

"Maybe…" Zoro said, but he wasn't sure about that.

"We're getting close." Luffy said as he looked at the map. "I think…"

"We're lost, aren't we?" Zoro said dully.

"No, no, I got it." Luffy said as he looked at the street names and the map. "Yep! It's just down this alley!" He turned to the alley.

Zoro just turned into the alley when he immediately recognized the alley from his dream. "Nani…?"

"Zoro?" Luffy said as he turned to look at his partner. "Everything okay?"

"I think I may be losing my mind."

Luffy walked up to the other and held the other's hand. "What's wrong?"

Zoro stared out into the dark alley. "I think I've been here before."

Luffy looked into the alley then back at his partner. "Are you sure?"

Zoro shook his head. "No… but I don't think we should head this way down…"

Luffy normally wouldn't go against the map, since it was drawn out by Nami, but he did know that if his partner was acting up like this, which was rare, than he would make an acceptation. He smiled as they went out of the alley. "Okay! We'll just go another way then! We have all day!" He said.

Zoro didn't want to make unnesseccary detours, and he even felt stupid feeling afraid of something he wasn't fully sure of. "Is it really okay?"

Luffy smiled. "Of course! I've never been to this part of the city, and this is our chance to explore it a bit. And I like spending time with Zoro!" He said as he hugged the man's arm. "Everything is so much cooler when Zoro's here."

Zoro couldn't help but blush in embarrassment. "Oi!" He could only say as the other laughed.

Somewhere in the shadows, a man with a cell phone made a call and waited. "They're here, but they didn't go down the alley." He whispered. "Looks like he has his memory, but can't recall it as his." He waited. "The kid with him said they were going to explore the city to find a different route to the location. What do you want me to do?" He waited until he nodded. "Okay sir, I'll keep an eye on them." With that he turned off his cell and slipped in the shadows.

-XxX-

About two hours of walking around the city, they found a street that would take them to their location.

Zoro still felt uneasy about the assignment and even held Luffy close to him as he looked at each building and alleyway, as if he feared something would jump out and get them. Luffy in the meantime was just plain happy to be with the other, but also noticed that he was on edge so he tried to talk to him in order to ease up.

"Oh! This should be the place!" Luffy said as he looked at his little map, but then looked confused.

Zoro remembered the area they were at. 'Just like that one dream…' He thought as he looked around the area, remembering the fog and seeing a man die in front of him. He also remembered the sound of guns going off.

"I know Nami wouldn't make a mistake." Luffy said as he looked at his partner's horrified face. "Zoro? What's wrong? You're pale."

"I had a dream about this place…"

"Dream?" Luffy said as he tried to recall anything that the other told him in the past. "Oh! The one you told me about that seemed real but couldn't be."

"Yeah, that one."

"Are you completely sure this is the place?"

"There's no way I could've thought it up unless I have seen it before." He said as he held his head. "None of this makes sense…"

Luffy didn't like to see his partner like this as he looked around and noticed something completely off. "Zoro… how come there's no one here?"

Zoro looked as well and realized that the area was dead quiet. "Just like my dream… There wasn't a soul around…"

"It's no dream…" Said another voice as they looked around to find the source.

"Who's there!?" Zoro called as he was in a ready to fight position.

"Roronoa Zoro… Age nineteen, born on November 11, master of the three sword style, and one of the very best assassins in the organization." The man said as he walked out of the shadows. "Any of that sound familiar?"

Luffy was in a fighting position as he watched the guy. "What the hell do you want?"

"You're of no concern to me, but your partner on the other hand…"

"What the hell do you want with me!?" Zoro said.

"Simply to tell you that the boss has been looking for you and would like to ask you to join."

"Well then tell him he's a little late to do that. I'm already taken."

"We know that. But you see, you weren't supposed to be found out."

"Found out?"

"I see you don't know just what you are."

"The hell are you spouting out about?"

"I see I've said too much as it is, but the boss's orders were to talk to you and get you to thinking. And I've done just that." He said as he walked back into the shadows.

"Oi!" Luffy called out as he followed him, but he couldn't see the man anymore. "What the hell was that about!?" He said as he looked at his partner. "Zoro?"

The man held his head as if he was having a headache. 'Found out? What the hell does that guy mean by that? Was I alive then? What happened? Am I supposed to be dead? Then why am I a Guard Droid? Aren't they supposed to be nothing but robots?'

"Zoro!" Luffy called out as he held the other's wrists, gaining his attention. "Zoro…"

"I'm sorry Luffy…" He said as he closed his eyes. "There's just… so many questions and not enough explanation to be a decent answer."

Luffy pouted. "Zoro! Listen to me! Whatever that guy said, forget it. It's obvious that whoever sent him was after you!"

"And may also know about me."

"I won't let you go." Luffy said as he tightened his grip. "If you want to know so badly, why didn't you ask? You've said that you weren't sure but you never asked me to help you find out."

Zoro sighed. "That's because I was sure that I couldn't be anything but a Guard Droid. But that dream and what we've seen today…" He said as he looked at the other's eyes. "I think there's something more going on here, and it does have to do with me. But why?"

Luffy let go of the other's wrists and hugged him.

"Luffy?"

"Don't go… Don't leave me…"

"I never said anything about leaving."

"You were thinking it."

Zoro paused from saying anything.

"You were thinking that if you go to this guy, you would know what happened and why. But… what if you never come back… I'll be alone again."

Zoro returned the hug. "Luffy… It's true that I have thought of that after that guy said it, but let's be real. Whoever this guy is definitely wants me to do something that I would be forced to do. I bet he killed that guy that was being blamed by the Runners."

"You think so?"

"That's just a hunch. But I think so."

"So he's a guy we should avoid."

"Yeah…" He said, but he wasn't very sure. "We better head back. Tell them it was just a prank or something."

Luffy nodded as he couldn't think up any other reason why they came back empty handed.

-XxX-

Somewhere in the city, the man laughed behind his desk.

"That's very good news! And what else did you witness?"

"There's no doubt that he has grown an attachment to his new partner."

"And his name?"

"I caught 'Luffy' as the name."

"… 'Luffy'… Hm… He may be of use to us."

"Would you like me to do anything?"

"Not at this particular moment. Now that I know that he has started questioning himself and knowing about his attachment to his partner, I have to come up with a plan that would expose him of what he truly is."

"Just let us know what you want us to do."

"Good night, Mr. 1."

"You as well, Mr. 0"

With that the phone was on its cradle and the man chuckled before full out laughing. "At last… Once the snow melts, we'll see just how loyal you are to your partner."


	12. Shopping Trip Pt1

Chapter 12: Shopping Trip Pt. 1

#-+-#

A week after the snow made an appearance on the city and their last assignment, Luffy was worried about Zoro's well being.

He had noticed that his partner was losing sleep, he pretended to sleep so the other wouldn't feel bad for waking him, but he could see the circles under those green eyes and would catch him taking a nap in their room on days where they don't have an assignment. But he even knew that the small sleep wasn't much help to his partner if the conversations and nightmares haunt him.

It was getting close to his favorite day of the whole year and he wanted to give something to his partner that would show how much of a great partner he was to him. But so far he had a hard time figuring out what kind of gift he should give to his partner, seeing that the man mostly has everything he needs. Clothes, sword polish kit, food, a place to sleep, good company, and a place to call home. How could he give a gift that summed up to all that?

Fortunately for him, he and the others had a tradition to settle the holiday gift shopping. He would join Vivi, Usopp, Chopper, and Robin on one shopping trip while his partner was going with the rest for the next day's trip. He was excited to go out and actually get something for his partner to celebrate their first holiday together, but he also was worried because no one knew about what he and his partner found out that day.

Zoro on the other hand felt horrible for the whole week after that day. He would be haunted by dreams that could be his memories but were different every night. It also bothered him when he was trying to get some sleep back. He knew his partner was concerned and that the other would do everything he could to keep him afloat. But he just wished the dreams and the uncertainty to go away and leave him to what things used to be.

When he heard about the holiday shopping tradition, he wasn't fully sure he was up to it. When he saw his partner seemed excited for it and caught his eye, how could he pass up on this opportunity to give something to his partner who has been with him for what seemed like two months. He knew the other was going to do the same, so why should he not do the same?

"Okay! We're off!" Vivi announced as she and her group took the elevator down.

"See you!" Nami said as she hummed a holiday tune. A rare sight to see for someone who seemed to be demanding and a bit of a control freak.

"So what do we do?" Zoro asked as Sanji was finishing up putting away dishes.

"We start planning out what we should get and prepare for anything for our party." Franky said as he finished up his cola.

"Oh…" Zoro said as he hadn't even thought of what to get Luffy. 'Shit…' He thought as he rubbed his already tired eyes.

"I know what I'm getting for Vivi!" Nami said as she seemed to glow. "Oh! I can't wait!"

"Yohohoho! How about some music to liven up the mood?" Brook asked as he just went ahead and played.

"Yeah!" Franky said as he brought out his guitar and started to jam along with Brook.

Zoro couldn't help but smile as he saw the others getting into the spirit. But he also felt a little dead for not feeling the same. Did he ever have a holiday like this? He tried hard to remember, but he couldn't… what was there to remember for a Guard Droid?

"I see the first group has set out!" Shanks announced as he walked out to join the rest of the group.

"Where have you been?" Nami said playfully. "We hardly ever see you now."

"Sorry, sorry. Busy with something at the moment." He said with a laugh.

"Yeah, it's starting to show." Sanji pointed out. "You should really try to relax a little."

"What do you think I've been doing all year?"

"You got me there."

"So, any ideas what you're getting for your partners?"

"I do!" Nami said.

"Same." Said Franky.

"I'm going to have to think about it." Sanji said.

"Yohohoho! I know what I should get!" Brook said.

Zoro was the only one silent.

"No idea?" Shanks said with an easy going smile. "Well! That's okay! That's what these things are for!"

"Looks like you and Sanji would have to wander around to figure out what you're going to get." Franky said.

"Great. I'm stuck with Marimo." Sanji said.

Zoro normally would make a snappy comeback, but he was tired and didn't want to waste his energy on the blonde.

"I better make something for when they come back. Knowing Luffy, he would be the first to find something out and be ready to come back." Sanji said, not realizing that it only made the swordsman feel worse about not thinking about a gift for his partner.

-XxX-

Out in the mall, however, it was a different matter.

Luffy wandered from store to store, finding a gift for his partner being his top priority. He has a budget and had to make every cent count if he was going to get his partner the best gift that shows how much he cared.

He had been looking for a good hour before resting by the fountain with a pout on his face. He knew the others would've found something for their partners about now, and that he was the only one that they're waiting on now. And usually he was the first one to be done, but he has a partner that requires time to get.

"There must be something…" He said to himself as he got up and walked around the mall again, maybe he could find something the next walk around.

He'd seen the glass statues in the card shop, but he knew those wouldn't do any good if they broke and a card wasn't much, but he got one blank one in case. He looked at the petshop, but there was no way he was going to get his partner something like that. He went to video stores and thought about getting something that the both of them could watch, but didn't think it was worth it. He went into clothing stores, which was a huge waste of time. All other stores were either too childish or too girly to be something suitable for his partner. Then he looked around the jewelry stores. The prices were crazy for his budget, but he couldn't help himself when something caught his attention, and sparkling things was on that list.

He looked at the necklaces that would look good on the girls in the group, but he also found some nice looking bracelets that range in any gender and age. But in the end it was just too much for his budget and all this sparkling things don't match up to his partner. If his partner was female, then yes, but his partner was male so it wouldn't work out.

He was about to go empty handed when he saw a store he never seen before, and realized that it was a brand new store. It was very different, dark and edgy in his opinion, but he liked checking things out.

He went in and saw that the store was pretty dark with a lot of black and punkish looking items. He saw a bobble head of a guy with a lot of pins in his head and a statue of a man with a huge sword and a rusty pyramid shape metal mask for a head.

"Can I help you with anything?"

He looked to see a girl with dyed blue neon hair cut short, black lipstick, light tan skin, and has red contacts on her eyes. He thought it was kinda cool. "Yeah, I'm looking for a gift for someone."

She smiled. "It is that time of the year."

He laughed. "Yeah, I've looked everywhere and I just noticed this place."

"Yeah, we just opened a few days ago."

"I figured it was new because I've never seen this place anywhere, and it was easy to miss too."

She sighed. "You're telling me." She said as she stood up. "So, what do you have in mind for a gift?"

He pouted. "That's the problem. I don't know what to give him."

"He? So you're looking for a gift for a guy?"

He nodded.

"What's he like? I could help you from there."

He smiled. "Really?"

"I can try."

"Thanks!"

"Thank me when we find something for your friend."

He nodded as he started to explain. "Well, he's mostly very quiet, but he's really nice when you get pass the grouchy look he usually has on. He likes to sleep a lot and he often gets lost if you left him alone. He's very strong and also smart. He's really good with holding and using swords too!"

"So he's a swordsman?"

He nodded. "Yeah, but lately he's been getting nightmares and has a hard time sleeping. He also seems to feel that he's questioning himself a lot."

"Did something happen?"

"Some jerk telling things about him that I don't know all that well, but he seems to know, but doesn't know how to explain it." That's when he realized something. "Why am I telling you this?"

"I'm a bit of a psychologist."

"Why are you working here?"

"Cause I like to watch people. It's fun for me." She said with a giggle. "That and I get to wear this." She pointed to herself.

He laughed knowing that it was true.

"Well! Sounds like you want to give him something to show that you're there for him, right?"

"Yeah! That's exactly it!" He said excitedly.

"Don't get your hopes up, I still have to figure out what kind of gift it should be."

Luffy nodded as she got up and mentioned him to follow.

"Let's see what we have." She said.

-XxX-

Later that day the group returned with some bags and quickly headed to their rooms to hide it from their partners before joining them for dinner.

"How was your shopping day?" Nami asked.

"It was good, but we had to wait for Luffy to come back." Vivi said.

"Really?" Sanji said. "I expected him to be the first one done like usual."

"Must be because Swordsman-san is very difficult to figure out a good gift for." Robin said with a giggle.

Zoro looked to Luffy, who was in his own world with food going into his mouth. 'He had a hard time finding me a gift?' He thought.

"He didn't go empty handed did he?" Franky asked.

Chopper shook his head. "Nope, he had it, but he wouldn't let us see what it was."

"Not like we could." Usopp said. "All gifts are to be hidden from each other until the day has arrived."

"That's true." Vivi said.

"Well! At least Luffy found something!" Shanks said. "It would ruin him if he came back empty handed."

"Huh? What about me?" Luffy said as he looked up from his eating.

"It's nothing, Luffy." Zoro said as he took a sip of his water.

"Oh, okay." Luffy said as he continued his horrid eating habit.

-XxX-

That night, Luffy was fast asleep from eating so much and seemed to be in the middle of a good dream.

Zoro on the other hand was still up as he listened to the other's dreaming state noises that seemed to have a calming effect on him. He thought about anything that would give him a clue to what he should get for the other when he felt the other wrap an arm around him. He looked to see the other was snoring softly and he looked peaceful. He brushed the bangs away from the other's face to have a better look and smiled, feeling a sense of calm that he had trouble finding for a week. He listened to the other's mumbles before falling asleep himself and staying asleep for the first time in a week.


	13. Shopping Trip Pt2

Chapter 13: Shopping Trip Pt. 2

#-+-#

The next day it was Zoro and the other members to go out shopping, and he was stuck with the blonde chef.

"Geeze… What to get for that guy." Sanji said. "He's creative and all and has a good shot, but what can I get that he doesn't have?"

Zoro stayed silent as he looked around each shop that the chef went into, and like the chef couldn't find anything.

"Nami is waiting and we're still looking."

"She already knew what she was getting Vivi." He said dully as he looked at every shelf for anything that could be something that could be the one gift for his partner.

"Still, we shouldn't keep a lady waiting."

"What's your hurry?"

"You have no sense of being a gentleman, are you?"

"And end up like you? No thanks."

"This is what I don't like about you."

"That I'm manlier than you?"

"No! Because you're an oaf that doesn't know the first thing about being a gentleman!"

Zoro sighed. "I don't want to waste my time with this." He said as he looked around one side of the store. "I'll look over here and you stay on that side, that way we don't end up fighting and save us both a lot of trouble."

"That I can agree with." Sanji said and that was going well for about five minutes.

"Damn, nothing." He said as he looked for the other. "Oi, Marimo, where the hell are you?" He looked around the store and came up with one plausible theory. "Damn bastard gave me the slip." He sighed. "Oh well, more time to focus on getting that guy a gift." He walked out of the store and saw one across and went over there. "That dress would look gorgeous on Nami, or Vivi, or Robin!" He had hearts in his eyes as he thought about the dresses the girls would wear.

"Oi, Bro." Franky said. "Where's Zoro?"

"Huh? Oh, he blew me off."

"Blew you off or didn't watch him."

"Do I look like a damn babysitter?"

-XxX-

Meanwhile Zoro was just glancing at the stores and walking pass them before finding one and nearly missed it.

It was the store that he wouldn't think of finding Luffy anything, but he figured that he could at least get an idea of what it looked like from the inside. 'Probably not as bad as it looked.' He thought as he went in.

"Hey there." Said the woman with the dyed blue neon hair. "Can I help you with anything?"

"Just looking…" He said since he wasn't sure of what to get from the shop.

"Okay. Looks to me that you were looking for a gift." She said.

"I am, just…"

"Not sure what to get?"

"Yeah…"

"You know, a guy came in here yesterday looking for a gift for a friend too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, cute as heck he was. But he was too young for me." She said with a laugh. "Oh well! So, what about you?"

"Well… I'm looking for a gift for a friend as well."

"Really?" She looked up at him and studied him a bit. "You look like what the guy described."

"Did this guy seem energetic, happy, and overall acts like a kid in a candy store?"

She smiled. "OMG… You two are looking for a gift for each other and found this store." She shook her head. "Come with me, I know the perfect gift for your friend. In fact he seemed so excited when he saw it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, practically have to convince himself to not buy the thing." She said as she pointed to the object in the shelf. "There it is."

Zoro looked and saw a small display of slip-on earrings and saw one with a small chain with a pirate skull dangling from it. "That's him alright." He said with a smile. "How much for it?"

"The original price is fifteen dollars, but since this is the season of giving, I'm giving it at half the price."

"Fifteen isn't that much, I'll pay for it."

"Okay!" She said as she took the earring out, took it up to the desk, put it in the box, and gave it to him. "Here you go."

Zoro paid it in full and thanked her. "Thanks, I'm glad I didn't pass this place up."

"No problem. Have a good holiday."

"This will be my first with a crazy group."

She laughed. "That's usually the best kind."

He smiled and laughed as well. "Especially with my partner."

"I bet he's a handful."

He grinned. "That's who he is, and that's what I like about him."

"He has that gift." She said with a wave. "I better let you go then."

He waved as well. "Don't close this place."

She laughed as he left the store.

-XxX-

It took him an hour to find the others when they started to leave the mall.

"Found something?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah. I did." He said with a confident smile. "You?"

He shrugged. "Yeah… not sure he'll like it though."

"That can't be good." He said as he felt a sense of pride to brag about how he was sure about his gift.

"Shut up." Sanji said as he was hunched over, showing that he was going to admit defeat this time.

"You better not have blown your earnings." Nami said.

"No, actually it was a really good deal."

Nami looked at him oddly. "Since when are you a shopper?"

"What the hell does that mean?" Zoro said.

"Oh, nothing." She said. "Just strange to hear a guy say it."

"Whatever." He said as they took a subway, the normal way, back to their base.

-XxX-

"Okay, we have to be quick or they'll find them!" Nami said as she ran to her room.

"Huh?"

"You'll get the hang of it." Franky said as he ran to his room as well as the other guys.

He got to his shared room, checked to make sure Luffy wasn't in, and looked around to see where he should hide his gift. Once he did, Luffy got out of the bathroom in nothing but a bath towel around his waist.

"Oh, Zoro!" He said happily. "You just got back."

"Y-Yeah…" He said as he could feel his heart beating in his ears.

"Is dinner ready?"

He shook his head. "No. He's just making it right now I think."

"Oh, okay." He said as he went up to a drawer and took out a few things. "Waters warmed up if you want to take a shower too."

He smiled. "Thanks pal."

He smiled as well. "It's good to see you smile. I missed it."

"Huh?"

He giggled. "Everything seems better when Zoro smiles."

"You're talking about something weird again."

Luffy stuck out his tongue. "It's the truth!"

He shook his head as he ruffled the wet head. "Thanks." He said as he looked at the other's childish face. "That means a lot. Sorry about the pass week."

"You knew?"

"When someone is faking sleep they have to breathe."

"Oh…" He said with a laugh. "I guess I forgot to do that, huh?"

He shook his head. "You're just too much. But that's the great thing about you?"

Luffy blinked before pouting. "You're talking about weird stuff."

He chuckled as he headed to the bathroom. "I got that from you."

Luffy looked confused as he watched the door close. "Since when did Zoro get weird?" He asked himself as he shrugged. "Oh well, he looks a lot better. That's all that matters."

-XxX-

With Shanks, he set up a meeting with Robin and Franky and sighed.

"Are you completely sure…"

"It's the only explanation that can explain it." Franky said.

"How is it possible?"

"It's not for government funded research." Robin said.

"So… whatever this is… it's underground work?"

"Yes." She said.

Shanks sighed as he had a thoughtful look. "Luffy doesn't need to know. No one in this group needs to know about this." He said. "As long as we have Zoro close to us, we don't have anything to worry."

"That we can agree." Franky said. "He's already bound to Luffy. Though I don't know how that works, but we don't have to worry about that either."

"True. But we also have to make sure that they don't fall into any assignments that may be a cover up for a trap. I noticed Zoro's behavior this past week, and it seems someone has contacted them."

Shanks sighed. "I don't know what to do… I know those two make the best double team around, but with Zoro's unusual condition… It's only a matter of time before their teamwork will harm each other."

"They may have already planned something like that." Robin said. "Seeing that someone may have contacted them, they may have already have their sights set on Luffy to get Zoro."

"My guess is to make them stay low for a bit." Franky suggested.

"But for how long?" Shanks said. "Luffy will do anything, no matter what the danger is. And Zoro is the same as it appears."

"I don't think we should resort to low profile." She said with a grin. "Since Zoro is a Guard Droid, and Luffy is the one who 'activate' him, I do believe that Zoro is in good hands as long as Luffy is safe. That goes the same for Luffy in good hands as long as Zoro protects him."

"Right! A win-win scenario." Franky said.

Shanks seems to like the idea as well. "Okay, as long as they have each other, we don't have too much to worry." He said. "Meeting adjourned." He said, ending the meeting. "We have a party tomorrow."


	14. Holiday Party!

Chapter 14: Holiday Party!

#-+-#

The next morning, Luffy woke up, as if instinct told him to, and smiled when he knew what day it was. He looked to see Zoro and pounced on him.

"Zoro! Wake up!"

Zoro made a startled sound before realizing who it was and groaned. "Luffy… What?"

"Wake up! It's morning!"

"So?"

"Present opening time!" Luffy called out, making the other turn over to face away from him.

"Go ahead without me then… Let me sleep a bit more."

Luffy pouted as he looked out to the door then back at his partner. "No! It wouldn't be the same!"

Zoro groaned as he placed a pillow over his head. "Then go wake everyone else up and leave me for last, will ya?"

"Oh, haven't thought about that."

"Then go…" He groaned out.

"Kay!" Luffy said as he jumped out of the bed and out the door. "Wake up! Wake up!" He called out.

Zoro sighed as he closed his eyes and tried to get a few minutes of sleep left before being rudely awaken again.

-XxX-

After Luffy survived a kick, a punch, and a shoe thrown at him, he went back to wake up Zoro, only to stop and stare at the other's sleeping position.

Zoro was sprawled out on his back, arms on either side, head craned to the left and softly snoring making his bare chest slightly go up and down with each intake and outtake of breath.

He found his mouth dry and his heart racing slightly, but he shook his head and went up to the other. "Zoro."

He placed a hand on the other's shoulder and started to shake. "Zoro! Time to get up now! Everyone is waiting for us!" He kept doing that until the other groaned and opened his eyes lazily. "Morning!"

Zoro blinked for a moment before getting himself up and yawned. "Okay… I'm up."

Luffy smiled as he grabbed the other's wrist. "Great!" He said as he dragged the other out of their bed.

"Luffy! Slow down!" Zoro said as he managed to get his feet on the ground.

-XxX-

Once they reached the meeting room, everyone was waiting with their gifts, some eager to open.

"Okay everyone!" Luffy said as he and Zoro plopped down onto the floor.

"Okay, everyone, on three!" Shanks said. "One… two… three…!"

Everyone started to tear open the paper and looked to see what they got.

Nami shrilled in delight when she held up a black dress. "It's perfect!"

"You said you wanted a black dress." Vivi said as she held up a similar dress in white.

Nami grinned as she whispered something in her partner's ear, making her blush.

Usopp held up a painter's set.

"Sorry, didn't know what to get you." Sanji said.

"No, it's okay." He said.

Sanji held up an apron.

"I didn't know what to get you either."

"It's cool."

Chopper was really happy with his chemistry set and Brook with some more sheet music to work on.

Franky was in a new shade of red while Robin giggled with a small blush of her own.

Zoro opened his and saw necklace of a dragon with three swords, each with a kanji with the sayings: truth, strength, and honor.

"I thought of you when I saw that." Luffy said when he saw his gift. "No way!"

"She told me you liked that, and it did remind me of you when I saw it."

Luffy tackled him to a hug. "Thank you, Zoro!"

Zoro didn't expect a hug and was knocked to his back. "You're welcome, and thank you for the necklace." He said with a laugh.

"Okay!" Shanks said as he clapped his hands. "I think this calls for something to eat!"

"Okay, okay! I'll get right on it." Sanji said as he went into the kitchen. "It'll be ready in an hour!" He called out.

"Okay!" Shanks called out. "Let's play a game to pass the time!"

"Oh boy…" Franky said. "It isn't what I think it is."

"You bet your blueprints it is!"

"What is it?" Zoro asked.

"It's the mistletoe game." Luffy said.

"Mistletoe?"

"Yeah, never did get it."

"So… Who's going to be the mistletoe fairy?" Robin asked.

"Well… Let's see…" Shanks said as he looked at everyone before grinning evilly. "How about…" He did a dramatic pointing motion. "You! Nico Robin!"

She just giggled. "If you insist." She said as she got up. "Where is the mistletoe?"

"Wait, how does this work?" Zoro asked.

"Robin hides the mistletoe somewhere around the base and whoever is caught under one has to kiss."

"Huh?"

"Okay!" Robin said. "I got the mistletoe!" She held up the innocent green object and white berries in her hand. "So don't look." With that she disappeared out of the meeting room.

"I just hope I don't get caught under with someone other than my partner." Nami said as Vivi blushed.

Zoro couldn't even imagine kissing his partner. He did know him for awhile, but not to do that. But as he looked at the other, then at his lips, he would curse to himself to thinking about kissing his partner that he owed his life for.

Luffy on the other hand remembered the first time he kissed his partner. It wasn't intentional but he got the other to wake up and now they were practically inseperatable. But now with the mistletoe game going, he wondered if his partner's lips were the same as the first time.

-XxX-

Once Robin was back in the meeting room, breakfast was being served and after that everyone had a sense of looking up and around for that troublesome plant.

The day went on with a great sense of enjoyment and the party seemed to never end. Loosening the stress that has built up and laughing with all their hearts.

The party lasted for hours before Shanks laughed himself to a drunken slumber, by then everyone was about worn out and on the verge of collapsing.

"I think it's time we hit the sack." Usopp said.

Sanji looked at the pile of dishes he would have to clean and yawned. "I'll do that tomorrow."

Nami helped Vivi to her feet and headed down to their room, which everyone followed suit.

Zoro looked for Luffy, and found him under the table. "Jeeze…" He said as he dragged his partner out of the table and carried him bridal style. "Safe to say you're heading to bed." He looked to see the other was a mess. "First a bath…" He shook his head as he headed to their shared room and set the other on the bed while he run the water to an acceptable temperature before filling the tub with the water and soap.

Once the tub was filled with water and bubbles, he went over to get his partner, still asleep and saw something that he didn't expect to see in their room.

"Damn mistletoe…" He whispered as he looked around to see if anyone was watching before getting Luffy and headed to the bathroom. 'Why the hell did Robin place that thing in this room!? Is she out of her cool headed mind!?' He thought as he took the other's clothes off, leaving the boxers on, wrapped the towel around the slim waist, and took the last article of clothing off before placing the teen into the tub.

"Just how did you get gravy in your hair?" He said as he washed the other from the top. "You're not going to bed smelling like a dump heap, that's for sure." He washed the other's head, rinsed, took a quick whiff and repeat the process.

-XxX-

Once he was done washing the other down, he emptied the tub of the contents and brought the other out to dry him. About a few minutes of drying his partner down, Luffy started to wake up a bit.

"Hey Luffy." Zoro said as a dazed looking teen looked at him. "You awake yet?"

Luffy looked around before looking at the other before falling asleep again.

"I'll take that as a no." He said with a grin as he finished drying the other down and putting on the other's p.j.s before carrying him back out to the room, still seeing the evil plant innocently hanging there above their bed.

"A mistletoe?"

He looked to see the other was awake now and looking at the plant. "Yeah…"

"Robin broke the rules. The mistletoe can't be hung in anyone's room." Luffy said. "And Robin is really good with the rules…"

"Maybe she got into some eggnog before being chosen."

"She hates eggnog…"

Zoro didn't know what else to say.

"Well… we better kiss then."

"Oi! You just said that this wasn't part of the game."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean we should break tradition."

Zoro groaned.

"You don't want to kiss me?"

Zoro looked at the other and didn't know what to say.

Luffy pouted. "You don't like me that much?"

"It's not that… It's just…" He didn't know what he was saying, his mind decided to shut down and leave him to babble anything that can make the other understand. He sighed as he asked. "Do you want to kiss me?"

"I did before."

"Huh? When?"

Luffy smiled. "When we first met, that's how you were able to wake up the first time."

"You… kissed me?"

"It was an accident, but it worked!" He said with a smile. "And I'm glad Zoro's here!" He held him close as he chuckled. "Everything is better with Zoro around!"

Zoro couldn't explain it, but he could feel his heart beating a bit quicker and the distanstance between them wasn't that far off as his mind came back with a reasonable thought. 'Well, he did say he kissed me, so I guess I can return the favor.'

"Zoro? Oi. You still in there?" Luffy asked as he poked the other's forehead.

Zoro looked at the evil plant and sighed. "Might as well uphold it's reptruble tradition." He said as he looked at the other, who looked like a child just then.

"So you're going to kiss me?"

"Unless you're going to do it."

Luffy smiled as he did just that without hesitation.

Zoro was a bit taken back by the lack of hesitation from the other, but he could feel how soft the other's lips were against his and how warm the body was against his now that the contact was much closer.

When Luffy leaned back from the kiss, he looked at the other and smiled. "Zoro's red!"

Zoro got his mind back in order and dropped the teen onto the bed. "Okay! We kissed, what the hell do we do with the damn mistletoe?" He said as he tried to get his blush down and his heart racing to calm down.

Luffy looked up at the mistletoe and shrugged. "I don't know, I've never been caught under it before."

Zoro just stared at the other as if he lost his mind. "You're kidding…"

Luffy shook his head. "Nope."

Zoro palm-faced as he groaned. "Forget it! We'll figure out in the morning!" He said as he was about to put it down, only to find that it was hard to take it down. "Damn it! Did she super glue this thing on or something!?" He managed to get his feet on the ceiling and tried to pull the damn plant out, but it wasn't going to budge. "What the hell!?"

Luffy was just laughing as the other was upside down pulling on a plant. "Zoro's too funny!" He called out as he pointed at his partner.

"Quit laughing and help me out here!" Zoro said when he could feel the blood going to his head. He upright himself and was back on the ground and glared at the plant that over the bed. "What the hell is wrong with that damn thing?"

"We'll ask Robin tomorrow." Luffy said with a yawn. "Let's go to bed." He pulled the covers and patted the spot next to him for the other to join.

He sighed as he did just that, glaring at the damn plant for all that it was worth.

"Nighty night, Zoro." Luffy said as he closed his eyes.

"Night, Luffy." Zoro said as he looked at the other and then at the lips. He had to quickly look away and saw the mistletoe. 'Damn it…' He thought as he turned away from the other so he didn't have to look at either his partner or the damn plant hanging on the ceiling.

Even though he wasn't looking at either of the two things, he couldn't keep the memory of what happened earlier out of his head. He bit his bottom lip to keep himself from thinking about it, but sighed and looked at his partner once more. 'He kissed me without a second thought.' He thought as he was over his partner. 'It's just a kiss, right? A quick contact of lips and nothing more.' He brought himself down and kissed the other.

He felt warmer than before and he thought he could feel something going on inside him, but he kept himself upright and backed away from the other, feeling really good and out of breath. 'What the hell?' He thought as he got back on his side of the bed and tried to get to sleep, but soon found that difficult as he still felt warm and wanted to kiss the other again. 'Let it cool down…' He took a deep breath as he closed his eyes, thinking about anything other than the kiss when he felt the other snuggle up against him. It wasn't making things easier for him, but he thought up something and kissed the other's forehead.

The scent of strawberries from the other's shampoo was pleasant to him as he turned his body and held the other close to him. 'This… doesn't feel bad…' He thought as he started to fall asleep, holding the other close to him.

Unknown to the two, Robin was hiding in the room for some time and smiled. She took out a wet cloth and rubbed it around the mistletoe, which then easily went out of the ceiling and exited out the room.

"Interesting." She said with a soft giggle.


	15. New Year Change

Chapter 15: New Year Change

#-+-#

A week went by and everyone was getting ready for the evening of the New Year.

Luffy was excited for the food Sanji will make for the party they were going to have, while Zoro was looking forward to drinking himself senseless so he didn't have to have listen to the loud festivities that would take place.

Luffy and Zoro helped with the arrangement, forced by Nami and Sanji, while the others took down the holiday decorations.

"Aw! I want them to stay up!" Luffy whined.

"You know the rules, Luffy. The lights go up a week before and come down a week after and a day before the New Year." Nami said.

"I know, but they're so pretty!"

"Oi! Listen to Nami-san!" Sanji said as he got a kick in.

"Ow…" He said as he rubbed the kicked spot. "You don't have to be so mean!"

"You're still wearing that Jolly Roger earring?" Vivi asked, seeing the silver skull with cross bones dangling on the teen's left ear.

"Yep! I plan on wearing through the New Year."

"Looks really cool on you!" Chopper said.

"I know! And I have Zoro to thank for that."

"For the millionth time." Zoro said as he got all the tinsel off of the walls. "Whose idea was to staple the tinsel on the walls?"

"Mine!" Luffy said proudly.

'Should've known…' He thought as he placed them back in a small box.

"Oh boy! This year has gone by so fast!" Usopp said.

"You weren't here long enough."

"Oi! I've been here long enough to live this long!"

"That's true." Robin said. "If he wasn't so fast on his feet he would've died on the first day."

"Oi!" Usopp said as he paled a bit. "You should watch what you say at this time! It could end up being a theme for the New Year!"

"Really?!" Chopper said, looking a bit nervous.

"Oh boy…" Franky said. "Now look what you've done love."

Robin giggled, not feeling ashamed.

"To think that so much went on this year." Shanks said. "We got new members, Luffy being the luckiest of the bunch."

Luffy giggled at that as he looked proudly at Zoro, who rolled his eyes.

"It's almost a shame that by tomorrow I would have to leave you guys here."

"Eh?!" The group said in unison. "You're leaving!?"

Shanks smiled. "Aye, I am."

"Why Shanks!?" Luffy said. "When were you going to tell us about this?"

"I figured now would be good."

"But why?"

"Because you're all set without me. I hardly have to do anything here anymore." He said with a smile. "You got a great navigator that calls most of the shots, a cook that would make sure to keep you balanced, a researcher to do more in-depth work, and you now have a partner that would make sure that you're safe and well, along with all the others with their own special talents." He sat down. "You knew that I wouldn't be here for a long time. And I've got my own group to return to up north. You understand, don't you?"

Luffy nodded. "Yeah… I know…" He said as he took off the strawhat and held it out towards the man. "Looks like you're going to need this back, right?"

The room was dead silent as the man smiled and laughed.

"Do you really think I need that?"

"But it's your lucky Boshi. You said so yourself that you never travel without it."

Shanks chuckled as he shook his head. "It's been yours for almost two years, Luffy." He looked at the teen. "And so far you took great care of it. So I'm letting you keep it." He laughed again. "You're going to need it more than I am for this New Year!"

Luffy smiled as he laughed as well while putting the hat back on his head.

The room seemed to lighten up when the two laughed.

"Well! What are all of you standing around for? Get going!" Shanks said as everyone got to moving again.

-XxX-

Once all the holiday decorations were down and the table was set with all the food that Sanji can conjure up, they went outside where the lights were still on below the city and on the roof tops.

"Look!" Brook said as he pointed out some other figures on a building roof top.

"Those are the other groups coming to join us." Robin said.

"Well we did have the best spot for something like this." Nami said.

"Huh? The best spot?" Zoro asked.

"Yeah, what do you mean by that?" Usopp asked.

"Jeeze, don't you remember last year's celebration?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"They're doing the count down!" Chopper called out as everyone waited until the five second mark, where everyone chanted until the whole city was lit up and fireworks were going off everywhere, but it was the group that got the best seat in the whole city.

-XxX-

When the fireworks were over, they went inside to celebrate the rest of the night away until dawn broke out, in which they passed out and spent the rest of their new year sleeping in.

Shanks got up around noon and smiled before leaving a note and walking out of the base for the last time.

-XxX-

By the time everyone woke up and saw the note, it was close to dinner time but Luffy wasn't all that hungry and spent the rest of his time in his room.

Zoro let the other be for a few hours before bringing their dinner to their room and saw that the other was a bit depressed. "Oi, is this how you're going to start your new year?" He asked as he sat down and placed the plate of food in front of his partner.

"No…" He said as he took a nibble of his food, which was better than what the other thought.

"Shanks is right you know." He said as the other looked at him. "With all of us working together, even though some of the time we fight and bicker about every stupid thing, we're a team. And a damn good one from what I could tell, and I'm the newest addition to this group." He smiled. "And with that said I would like to see you smile, and it has to be a good one or I won't sleep here tonight."

Luffy pouted. "Zoro!"

He shook his head. "Not seeing it!"

Luffy pouted before a grin made itself known before a full blown smile with a laugh.

"That's the Luffy I know." Zoro said with a smile of his own.

"Thanks Zoro! I needed that."

"I didn't think it would work." He said when the other playfully punched him before gobbling up his food.

"We won't be running until the snow melts…" Luffy said with a pout.

"It will soon enough. When it does we will be running like we've never done before, right?"

Luffy smiled. "Right!" He said excitedly as he imagined just how fast he was going to be once the snow melted away and the city was once again accessible to all Runners. "I can't wait!"

"Looks like you have to for a bit." Zoro said, being realistic. "Until then, we have to make sure no one else slacks off."

"Right!" He said as he smiled and hugged the other. "You are the world's best partner!"

"Oi…" Zoro said as he felt warm and embarrassed. He still remembered the mistletoe incident and he couldn't explain what happened to the mistletoe, but he did know that he liked the kiss and would often tried to forget it, but it seemed Luffy liked it as well, but hasn't made any advances, for that he was grateful for. But whenever the other was close to him like this, he couldn't deny that the other felt nice against him, even holding him while he slept was beginning to be difficult as he wanted to kiss the other more at that time than any other.

"But it's true!" Luffy said with a pout.

Zoro smiled as he ruffled the other's head. "If it's coming from you, then I'm okay with that."

Luffy smiled as he nuzzled against the other. "You're the best."

He laughed a bit as he felt the hug getting a bit tighter, but he didn't care. Despite his confused feelings for his partner, he was certain that he was happiest when the other was around him like this.

"Come on, I think that Crap Cook made a special dessert for the first day of the new year."

"Yosha!" Luffy cheered as he dragged the other with him as they rushed to the meeting room.

Yep, his new life was much more rewarding than his old life, whatever it was.


	16. Ace Arrives!

Sanji: Welcome back! Happy New Year!

(giggles) Happy New Year, Sanji. What do we have?

Sanji: A lot. (grabs one) From Kirai-san...

You're welcome!

Sanji: (grabs another) From Green-san...

For the first chapter, thank you. Chapter 5, you're not alone there. Chapter 7, they decay. Chapter 10, I try! Chapter 11, yes, I couldn't find any other villain with those traits. If there were, then I haven't seen them yet. Chapter 15, you have no idea…

Sanji: (grabs another) From Mimi-chan...

For chapter 6, he wants to know things first before stepping into things. That's all. Cahpter 7, what can I say? I'm a sucker for sweet moments like that. Chapter 8, the award gets sent to them either way. Chapter 9, you'll find out soon. Chapter10, at this point it was a bit early for the group to get to know Zoro, and he didn't mean to sound heartless, but he's curious about what makes Zoro different from normal Guard Droids. But of course he knows that Luffy would give him hell if he did try anything like that. Chapter 11, like I said, I'm a sucker for sweet moments like that. Chapter 13, maybe he should but then where would the story be? Besides he trusts Luffy to do the right thing in the end. Chapter 14, she's interested in the two's relationship, what's not to get? Chapter 15, you'll see. Happy New Year!

Sanji: Long one. (grabs another) From Tori-san...

For chapter 10, yep! Chapter 15, thanks. Happy New Year!

Sanji: (grabs another) From Soge-san...

For chapter 9, I remember that part as well. I felt sorry for Usopp but I laughed a bit as well. Chapter 10, yeah… It was sometime in the Renaissance age and the main characters were only 14 or 16, which at that time it was considered adulthood and a time for them to marry.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Dreamer/Earth...

Thanks.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Kira-chan...

For chapter 10, you'll find out soon. Chapter 15, yep! Happy New Year!

Sanji: (grabs another) From Dreamer-san...

Here's the next five chapters.

Sanji: (grabs another) From Homb-san...

Thanks for the pocky! I haven't had one in ages! (munches)

Sanji: Oi! Was that the Marimo!?

Nope. Well! Enjoy! And I'll announce what fairytale story I'm going to be working on first from my poll at the end of chapter 20! Enjoy!

Sanji: Melloine!

* * *

Chapter 16: Ace Arrives!

#-+-#

The winter month finally fade away into spring and the snow slowly yet surely melt away and the world was once again bright and shining under the bright sunlight.

"Yahoo!" Luffy called out as he flew to the pipe from the other building climbed, followed by his partner, onto the rooftop and ran to another building before entering and caused chaos from within the building.

Zoro laughed as he climbed onto the fountain structures that lead to an opening to the hallway and he and Luffy ran down the hallway, broke the window to get to the other walk way on the other side and found an air duct they can get into, had some difficulty moving along there, but it was short lived as they found a room and searched it.

"About time we got something to work with." Luffy said.

"Seriously. I was starting to forget the thrill of this."

"I know! I like the snow, but not when it gets in the way of the real fun!"

Both laughed as Zoro found what they were looking for. "Found the papers."

"Yosha!" Luffy said as Zoro rolled it up, put a rubber band on it, and handed to the other, who then placed it in his many pockets. "We better get going."

"Hai." Zoro said as he helped the other get into the duct and climbed up himself.

They crawled their way to another part of the building they were in, Zoro checked to see and hear anything before opening the duct to enter the room, and see a camera.

"Damn."

Luffy looked and made a face. "We'll be out of here before they can catch us."

Zoro smiled, knowing that was true and they went out of that room and ran down the hallway to find the stairs.

-XxX-

Once they were at the rooftop, there was a helicopter waiting and Smoker aiming a gun at them.

"Hold it right there, Runner!"

"Yo!"

"Don't 'Yo' me like you know me!"

"Nah… But you're the only idiot who bothers trying to catch us, specifically me." Luffy said.

"He has a point." Zoro said.

"You be quiet!"

Zoro shrugged as he talked to his partner. "What's the plan?"

"Oi! You're both under arrest!"

"Well, we could try to go down, but knowing Smoker he has his forces down there as well."

"So are we going to jump?"

Luffy looked around. "We could, but we would be committing suicide. And we promised Nami not to do that thing you did again."

"I don't remember any promise." Zoro said.

"Just what are you talking about?" Smoker demanded.

"You're able to do it again?" Luffy asked.

"We are in a tight spot… Either that or I could just cut him up to ribbons."

"Zoro…"

"I know, I know…" He said as he looked around. "Okay, found one way."

"What are you two up too?"

Luffy shrugged. "Beats me." He said as he was grabbed and Zoro charged towards Smoker, sword drawn.

"Oi!" Smoker said as some of his subordinates started firing, which only redirected by the katana's blade.

Zoro turn the sword over so that the dull side was showing, attacked the cops, went through the helicopter and jumped to the building that was behind it. "It's cutting it close!" He said as he drawn his sword back in before bracing for impact through one of the glass windows and landed on a desk, which they rolled to the floor.

"Itte…" Luffy said.

"That could've gone better…" The other said as they got back up, shook of what they had, and walked before running.

"We're alive, that's all that matters!" Luffy said with a laugh. "Let's go home!"

"Hai! I'm in the mood for a drink about now."

"And I'm hungry!"

They went into the elevator and stood there.

"Wouldn't his men already be here to get us?" Zoro asked as Luffy grinned.

"Yep!"

"You have a plan?"

-XxX-

Outside the elevator doors on the first level, Smoker's men were there waiting for the doors to open while the others were getting to the rooftops to catch them. But when the doors opened, they weren't there.

"What do you mean gone!?" Smoker shouted through the walkie talkie.

"Just like I said sir… The doors opened and they weren't there."

"They're not on the roof tops either." Said another.

Smoker sighed as he turned off the walkie talkie. "That crazy brat will be the death of me. Him and that daredevil of a partner!"

-XxX-

Meanwhile, somewhere in the ducts Luffy and Zoro quietly made their way through the building and tried to get up to a certain level before getting out from the ducts into a room and decided to try the roof again and found that the rooftop was clear.

"Let's move." Luffy said as they made a plan out and execute it.

-XxX-

By the time they made it to the base, they were immediately looked over by Chopper.

"You guys better have the papers you were assigned to retrieve." Nami said as Luffy digged it out.

"Right here!"

She took it and looked at it. "Good job."

"Thanks!" Luffy said as he giggled.

Zoro leaned back and relaxed a bit, donning some bandages like the other was getting. "Do we have anything else?"

"Not for today." Vivi said.

"Even if we did you two would need a day's time out." Nami pointed out. "You're just lucky that your brash move didn't get both of you killed."

"Lay off will you!" Zoro said as he sighed. "I just misjudged the distance by a fraction of a second!"

"Every second counts!" She said as she hit him with an apple.

"Ow! Damn it!"

"Oh! Apple!" Luffy said as he grabbed it. "Thanks Nami!"

"Agh! You two!"

"What's her problem?"

Zoro sighed as he laid down on the couch. "Who cares, it's a woman thing."

"Oh, then I wouldn't get it." Luffy said with a laugh. "Oi, are the other's back?"

"Just me and Nami, Chopper, Brook, and you two."

"Oh, so they're still out and about?"

"Hai."

"Oi!"

Everyone looked at the door to see someone enter through.

"Anyone miss me while I was out?" Asked a man of twenty with a body built similarly to Zoro's, freckles dotted his cheeks and black hair with easy waves at the bottom.

"Ace!" Luffy called out as he ran up to the man.

"Ace-kun!" Nami said happily. "About time you came back!"

The man laughed as he hugged Luffy. "Aye, the chase went on longer than I thought it would."

"Oh! You gotta meet my partner!"

"Eh? You got yourself a partner?"

"Yeah! Come on!" Luffy said as he dragged the other to where his partner was, who got up from the couch. "Ace, this is my partner, Roronoa Zoro. Zoro, this is my older brother I told you about."

Zoro smiled as he bowed. "It's great to finally meet you. Luffy told me a lot about you."

Ace laughed. "I hope not, but then this guy never says anything bad about anyone."

"Unless he really doesn't like them." Zoro pointed out.

Ace laughed. "So true!"

"Oi, is that Ace I hear?" Sanji said as he entered with Usopp.

"Ah! Sanji-kun! Usopp-kun! It's great to see you guys!"

"Ace-kun! It's great to see you too!" Usopp said.

"Sanji! We're gonna have a party once everyone comes back!"

"Aye, aye!" Sanji said. "I bet you're tired from wherever you went."

"Hai, but if Zoro is Luffy's partner…"

"I can sleep out here. " Zoro said. "It's fine."

"If you insist." Ace said.

"Hai, you and Luffy need to catch up on some things."

"That's true." Ace said as he patted the other one the shoulder. "I just met you and I already like you, and by the looks of it you and Luffy went through a tight spot. But I'm glad to see that things went well in the end, eh?"

Luffy laughed. "They did!"

Ace yawned. "Right, I'm turning in. Tell me when the party started, okay?"

"Hai!" Said the others while Ace and Luffy went to the room.

"Wow, Ace is completely different from Luffy." Zoro said.

"I know." Nami said with a sigh. "I don't know why Luffy has to be the one leading this group."

"Oi, Luffy isn't that bad of a leader." Zoro defended.

The four looked at the man and smiled.

"Spoken like a true partner." Usopp said.

"Oi!"

The four just held in their laughs while the other just sighed and laid back on the couch and started to take a nap.


	17. I Kissed Him First!

Chapter 17: "I Kissed Him First!"

#-+-#

As Ace and Luffy headed to the room the elder of the two decided that it was a good time to start asking his younger brother about his new partner.

"Oi, Luffy, what can you tell me more about Zoro?"

"Nah? Like what?"

"Like… Basic stuff?"

Luffy blinked before looking suspicious. "You're not trying to take him away from me are you?"

"Eh? Why would you think that?"

Luffy pouted. "Well you're not getting him. Zoro's mine!"

Ace blinked as he snapped his fingers near his ears to make sure he heard things correctly. "What did you say?"

"I said that Zoro is mine and that you can't have him. Zoro is a strong guy and the greatest partner in the world, there's no way I'm going to give him up to anyone, even you!"

Ace blinked as he looked at his brother closely. "What exactly happened between you two?"

"Well… We went on a lot of assignments, gotten out a couple of tight ones, enjoyed each other's company-"

"Define 'enjoyed'…"

"Hanging out, talking, drinking hot cocoa outside, watching the sunrise, take naps together, running from building to building… not much different from what I normally do with my nakama."

Ace sighed as he accepted it. "Okay, that's all that I need to know about the two of you." He said as he yawned.

"You're so weird Ace." Luffy said as he walked along side his brother.

"Sorry, sorry…" He said. "So, what happened in the Christmas party?"

"Oh well, since we had about four new members it was their first and Shanks did the mistletoe game and Robin was it."

"Oh? Who ended up kissing who?"

"Zoro and I did."

Ace stopped in his tacks. "Where?"

Luffy laughed. "What was strange that she placed in the room, which was against the rules!" He said as he noticed that his brother was nowhere to be found. "Eh? Ace?"

-XxX-

By that time Robin and Franky came in and greeted everyone. "Hello everyone." She said.

"Oh! Robin! Franky! Guess what!?"

"Chopper found the cure for idiots?" Franky asked with a laugh.

"No! Ace is back!" Vivi said.

"Oh…" Robin said. "That's not good."

"Huh? How come?" Nami asked when Ace barged in and looked to see Zoro, sleeping on the couch, and went up to him and put his hands on the other's neck.

"You son of a bitch!!" Ace called out as he was shaking Zoro, who was turning blue in the face.

"Ace!?" Nami and Vivi said as they were surprised to see.

"Oi, oi, what's going on?" Sanji asked as he saw what was going on. "Not getting involved." He went back into the kitchen.

"I hanged the mistletoe in the room that Zoro and Luffy were using." Robin admitted.

"Robin! That's against the rules!" Vivi said.

"And you're good with the rules!" Nami agreed.

"You got curious again love." Franky said dully, as if expected something like this.

"They look so sweet together…" She said with a smile that was anything but innocent.

"Ah! Ace!" Luffy said as he charged at his brother to get off of his partner, who looked purple in the face. "Zoro! Can you hear me?!"

"Oi! Oi! Luffy! Get away from that pervert!"

"Oi! You don't go around killing my partner, you baka!" Luffy said as he charged at his brother and they fought while Zoro was getting back into consciousness.

"What the hell just happened?" He asked as he held his throat. "Damn that scared the shit out of me…"

"I'm sorry, Zoro-san, but it seems my meddling has given you a death sentence from Ace."

"What the hell did I do?"

"Kissing Luffy under the mistletoe." She said simply as she walked away to her room.

"Oi! Aren't you going to do something about this!?"

She shrugged. "He's not mad at me."

"Oi!" He said as the fighting between the brothers ceased and everyone looked to see the two brothers panting on the ground.

"You gotten a bit stronger the last time I saw you." Ace said.

"Yeah… Zoro helped me to get stronger."

"He did? Oh…" He looked at the man he tried to kill a moment ago. "Sorry about trying to kill you!"

Zoro didn't know what to say to that as he was a bit nervous about saying something that would get him killed.

"But if you ever kiss my brother again, I'll throw you off this building myself." Ace said with such a happy face that it successfully scared the man to the core.

'Oh shit…' He thought as his partner got up and glared at his brother.

"Ace! Don't you dare threaten my partner like that!" He said. "If you ever try to hurt him again like that, I'll never speak to you ever again!"

That seemed to get the other as he hugged his brother. "Please don't! It nearly killed me when I wasn't able to see or hear you for so long!"

"Then don't hurt Zoro like that! Especially since you were nice to him when you came in!"

"But Luffy, he kissed you…"

"I kissed him first, baka."

Everyone was in a pausing silence before Ace fell to the ground.

"Ace? You okay?"

"Somebody wake Chopper…" Nami said as she looked at the older brother, passed out from extreme shock on the floor.

"Na? Nami, why is Ace on the floor?"

"I'll explain later, right now let's just worry about getting him up."

"Oh, okay." Luffy said as he looked at Zoro. "Oi, Zoro, you okay?"

"I'll live…" He said as he got up off the floor. "That took me by surprise."

Luffy saw something on his partner's neck and went up for a closer look. "Damn, your neck is all red!"

"He did have a good grip." He said as he placed his hand lightly on his neck, which stung a little. "Just something cold over it and some sleep and I'll be okay."

"You sure?"

Zoro smiled. "I'm no doctor, but this isn't something that would end my life if it isn't looked at."

Luffy smiled and nodded. "Okay, better take Shank's old room at the back."

"Right. Wake me up when the party is about to start."

"Yosh!"

Unknown to the two, Ace was out of unconsciousness and listened to the conversation. 'Sounds like a decent guy… ' He thought as he made a resolve to talk to the man himself.


	18. Second Chance Talk

Chapter 18: Second Chance Talk

#-+-#

That evening as the party went on, Luffy, Usopp and Chopper were playing and causing everyone to laugh and join in on the fun while Zoro was content with just watching as he took a swig of sake.

"Yo." Ace said as he was next to the other with his own bottle in his hand.

"Hey Ace." Zoro said as he felt a bit uncomfortable.

"Listen, I'm really sorry about earlier. I jumped into conclusions a lot." He said as he made an awkward laugh.

"I nearly died." Zoro said dully as some evidence was still on his neck.

"Yeah…" Ace now felt guilty about that. "Well, when I heard you that you were kinda forced to kiss, stupid tradition, but I never expect my brother to be the one to make the first move." He scratched the back of his head. "Well, I guess I wanted to get to hear your side of the story so that I can fully see what my brother sees in you."

Zoro looked at his bottle with a small smile. "Where to begin?" He said as he tapped the mouth of the bottle to his lips before stopping. "Well, I guess the first thing you need to know about me is that I'm a Guard Droid that was thrown out and Luffy just figured it was a good idea to take me home and found a way to turn me on."

"Were you defective?"

"Don't know, but lately there seems to be some evidence that I was once human before. How that happened I don't know." He sighed. "I've been wondering about just what the hell I am for a while and why me? But then Luffy has a great way of telling me how he feels about me and seems to set things right with just accepting who I am and the answers will come to me." He took a sip before continuing. "But sometimes I wonder if he should be concerned about having me around."

"Why?"

"Regardless of the recent information, I'm considered a Guard Droid and that means that it only takes a few key words to command me to do something against my will."

"And you're afraid that you may turn on him?"

"Worse case scenario." He said as he looked at Luffy, who was singing off key with the rest of the group. "When I think about that, I have the feeling of getting away from him, save him any pain I may inflict on him that may never heal or end up dead. But then I would still be hurting him by leaving him, but at least he'll live if I do that. But I know him enough that he will run above rooftops to the ends of the earth to find me." He smiled gently. "He's a great guy, even with the recent events."

"What are these events?"

Zoro stared at the young teen as they made eye contact, smiled and gave him a small wave before continuing. "That I was human, an assassin, who was brought back from the brink of death to be a Guard Droid."

Ace blinked as he was surprised to hear this information.

"No one else knows about this, so don't tell anyone."

"This could be a serious thing for you, for both of you."

"Luffy doesn't want to tell anyone because that would mean strict limitations on our assignments. And he's a reckless spirit."

Ace sighed knowing that much from experience. "And you? You're okay with this?"

Zoro looked at the other with a smile. "I'm the same. I don't like to be contained."

"Oi! Zoro!" Luffy called out as he went up to the other. "Let's dance!"

"I don't dance!"

"I'll show you! It's easy!" Luffy said with a laugh as he dragged the other out with him.

"Oi! Oi!" Zoro said as he was dragged out to dance with his partner, who was just moving around like he usually did.

Ace laughed as he watched this, but what he heard from the other was troubling him a little as he watched the man being led by his brother.

As the party dimmed down and everyone headed to bed, the couch for Zoro, Ace decided to talk to his brother, but soon saw that he would have to wait until morning because his brother is fast asleep.

Zoro was still up a bit as he stared at the dark ceiling and thought back on all the things he and Luffy done together and smiled. "Screw my past, this life is better." He said as he settled to sleep. "Whoever I was then can't compare with who I am now."

-XxX-

Somewhere in the city, the man known as Mr. 0 was waiting by his computer for something to come up, which it did and he checked out the file that was sent to him.

He opened the file and saw some pictures of Zoro and Luffy together as well as some information about Luffy.

He took his time reading the information about the teen as he smiled. "You will do perfectly…" He said as he opened up a document and started to type before sending it to some accounts that he decided that would do the job well.

In other parts of the city, the sent document appeared on some computers and the occupants looked at the message on the document and smiled.

"It's time." Mr. 0 said as he laughed.


	19. Fake Assignments?

Chapter 19: Fake Assignments?

#-+-#

"This is insane!" Nami said as she looked at the list of assignments. "There's no way there's this many people that's asking for us."

"We must be popular." Luffy suggested as if it answered everything.

"Some of them might be fake assignments." Zoro suggested remembering the last assignment.

"Exactly!" Nami said. "There's no way that we get this many even at this time of the year."

"What do you suggest we do?"

"I say we just do the damn thing by order and see whether or not these are legit."

"Isn't that a bit risky?" Zoro asked.

"Of course it is! But what's the point of being a Runner if you're afraid of heights!?"

"Someone could be setting a trap."

"A trap?"

"Zoro has a point there." Ace said as the remembered the talk from the party. "Even though our operation is good with carrying out anonymous requests, there's no doubt that some cops have figured out how we operate and are trying to get us as we do our job."

"Oh… I haven't thought about it…" She said as she looked at the list. "Then most of the awards are just crap that's trying to get us."

"So what do we do?" Chopper asked.

"If we do go out and investigate, we may end up being caught." Sanji said.

"But if we don't someone else would get the reward." Usopp said.

"We can either play it safe and stay here, or we be daring and go anyway." Robin said.

"Either way we won't know for sure until we get out there." Franky said.

Zoro looked at Luffy and smiled. "What do you think? Luffy?" He asked.

Luffy had a thoughtful look for a minute, balancing the odds and ends until he made a decision. "We go."

"But Luffy…" Ace was going to protest when Luffy laughed.

"Ace! I know my own nakama like I know my own name. All of them are strong and very tactful. If they get into a jam, I bet my life that they will make it out with no problems!"

That seemed to get everyone eager to start.

"Nami! Make sure you separate our assignments to the most compatible and double check the maps in case it is a false alarm and need a quick escape route." He said, surprising a few.

"Hai!" Nami said as she went to do that.

"Sanji, make some boxed lunches for everyone, who knows how long we'll be out there."

"Leave it to me." He said as he got up and went into the kitchen.

"Usopp, do you have any leftover smoke bombs, in case push comes to shove?"

"Yeah I do actually."

"Find out how much you have and give each member about three or four."

"Right!" Usopp said as he went to his room to get them.

"Everyone, get ready for anything and everything."

"Aye!"

Ace was surprised to see his little troublesome brother was able to act very much like a leader. 'When did this happen?' He thought as he tried to remember the last time he saw his brother before leaving and what he witnessed.

"Oi, Ace." Zoro said, gaining the man's attention. "Would you like to join us?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah! You can see how we do it!" Luffy said with a giggle.

Ace thought about it for a bit and nodded. "Why not? I may be some kind of help as well."

"Yosha!" Luffy said as he finished what's left of the breakfast.

"You're going to have a stomach ache if you eat all that." Zoro warned.

"Nah? But I never got that."

"When we're running it'll be apparent."

"Then Zoro or Ace will make sure that I'm okay."

Zoro sighed as he looked at Ace. "Let's hope that doesn't happen."

"Aye, it's difficult jumping one building to the next with someone on your back."

"No kidding, I've done it twice."

"Seriously!?"

"Hai."

Ace rubbed his temple. "How much did your life flash before your eyes?"

"None, at that time I didn't even think about memories, I was more concerned with getting the both of us out of a jam."

"Spoken like a true partner."

"So I keep hearing." Zoro said as everyone came back and organized their assignments, go over alternative routes that the authorities would have difficult time with, and some small gadgets that would help them escape easier.

"Yosha! We're ready to head out!"

"Aye!" Everyone cheered as they did just that.

"Okay…" Ace said as he looked at the map for their route of assignments. "We have to head north from here until we get to our first assignment."

"Okay!" Luffy said as he looked at his partner. "Ready?"

"Always."

He looked at his brother. "Ready?"

"Of course!"

"Then let's go!"

Ace started to run first, then Luffy and Zoro as they headed north to their first assignment.

-XxX-

When each group went to their first assignment place, they looked through what they were going to retrieve, unaware that they're being watched closely.

Mr. 0 looked up at the monitors in an isolated room and watched the groups in each room, some in frustration while other's found what he asked to be planted. He also kept an eye of the swordsman and his partner and the older brother.

"All according to plan…" He said as he had a call and answered it. "Mr. 0… No, not yet, they just found a piece of information that will be revealed later in their next meeting…. Yes… it's about time that he knew the truth and make a choice." He chuckled as he hung up. "I hope you enjoyed you little fun, because soon you will lose it all." He laughed loudly as some monitors showed some groups in confusion of the planted pieces that would soon come together.


	20. Taken!

Chapter 20: Taken!

#-+-#

The whole day everyone was out and about to their locations and found either nothing or envelopes with a strange symbol of a hook. Within the envelope is just a blank piece of paper with a number in the middle, but decided to bring them along as they moved onto the next one.

Only a couple groups nearly got caught, but thanks to Nami's strategic planning, they were able to get away from the pursuers and continue their way.

-XxX-

With Luffy, Zoro, and Ace, they just found yet another envelope in their sixth and last building.

"Another strange paper…" Luffy said with a pout. "What gives?"

"Has to be invisible ink." Ace suggested.

"Invisible ink?" Zoro said.

"Hai, maybe whoever sent out those assignments wants us to know something that he couldn't let anyone else know."

"But why go through all the trouble?" Luffy asked.

"I don't know…" Ace said as he tried to come up with a reasonable explanation.

"Could be secret plans for some project." Zoro suggested as he pointed to the number in the middle. "And this must be the order that it's in."

Ace looked at it a bit and questioned it. "Why give it to us? We're not a security bank for things like this."

"We'll just take it with us and find out. Maybe someone will know what it means." Zoro said.

"That seems to be our only option at this point." Ace agreed as they placed the paper back into the envelope and took it with them. "We better head back then I'm sure the other's are back at base by now."

"Hai." Both Luffy and Zoro said as they ran out of the office, up the stairs and went from rooftop to rooftop back to base.

-XxX-

"Oi! Everyone!" Luffy said as he went through the sky light opening.

"Welcome back, you're just in time for dinner!"

"Food!"

Ace and Zoro went down as well and saw that Robin and Nami were looking over the papers on the floor.

"You got the strange papers too?" Nami asked.

"Yeah, we did." Ace said as he handed the papers to the women. "Any idea what it could be?"

"We're going to put them together in order, heat it up and see if there's anything we could see." Robin said.

"How are you going to heat it up? It's too big to fit in the oven."

"Usopp and Franky are working on that." Nami said as she placed the last of the missing spots. "It's odd…"

"What is it?" Zoro asked.

"By the size of these papers, it looks like each one could be photograph."

"Photograph?" Vivi said as she went over to hand the women the drinks.

"Let's just tape these together and wait for Franky and Usopp to finish their heating device."

"Dinner everyone!" Sanji called as he got the table set with everything.

"Yosha!" Luffy and Chopper said as they got to their spots.

Zoro sat next to Luffy while Ace sat next to him. 'The papers are the same size as pictures?' He thought as he glanced back to see the taped down papers. He remembered the stranger that he and Luffy met some time ago and wondered if this was yet another attempt to get him to remember. 'Why? Why drag everyone to do this?' He thought as he turned back to his plate, only to feel like he has lost his appetite.

"Nah? Zoro, everything okay?" Luffy asked as he stopped his eating when he saw the other didn't take a bite.

"Ah? Yeah… Just thinking…"

Luffy pouted as he took the other's fork, stabbed the shrimp and held it up to the other's mouth. "Open." He said.

Zoro blinked. "I'm okay, really…"

"Open."

Zoro sighed as he complied and ate the shrimp. "Happy?"

"Are you?"

"I was just thinking."

"I've heard that before, and all those times it was you questioning yourself. Jeeze Zoro! We've talked about this before!"

"I know, Luffy, I know."

"Then eat, or I'm gonna have to steal from you."

"Do and you're going to have to take the knife out of your hand."

Luffy smiled as he giggled. "If you catch it!" He said as he took the piece of bread. "See!"

"Oi!" Zoro said as he stole the bread back and ate it.

Ace smiled as he understood what the other meant by Luffy helping him out.

-XxX-

After dinner, Franky and Usopp came out with their device and placed the tapped papers under the heater on the glass and waited until something was happening. The numbers were disappearing and were replaced with letters which showed up as a message.

_"Roronoa Zoro,_

_You've had your fun… Now see what you truly are…"_

"The hell?" Sanji said. "It's for Marimo?"

"Why go through the trouble of spreading the papers out?" Nami asked. "And what's with the message?"

"Maybe…" Robin said as she took one corner of the paper and flipped it over, revealing a picture of Zoro, covered in blood and a piece of paper saying 'Time's Up'.

Zoro then felt dizzy as he felt his head pounding and difficult time breathing.

"Zoro!" Luffy called out as he saw the other was falling.

Ace caught the man as he saw that the other was in some kind of an attack. "Chopper!"

"Right!" Chopper said as he ran to the door to get his medical supplies, only to be stopped by a gun shot.

Everyone looked to see a man with a gun as he aimed it towards them, along with some men with some guns of their own aiming towards them.

"Remember me, Roronoa-san? Remember my voice from that night. The last night you were human?"

"C-C-" Zoro panted as his head was pounding with the onslaught of memories before he found the one and cried out. "Crocodile!"

"Crocodile!? The president of Rain Base company?" Robin said as she looked at the man.

"That's correct…" He said as he and his men held up their guns. "If you don't mind, would you mind handing him over. He's caused enough trouble as it is."

"Like hell we are!" Luffy said as he went to his partner and held him.

"Don't you know what you have there?" He said. "That's a one of a kind Guard Droid. Most of those things are made by pure science and engineering, but the newer models were actually made from freshly dead corpses. But Roronoa-san… He was barely alive when he became one."

"Don't care! He's my partner and that's that!"

Crocodile sighed. "You're just as troublesome as the report said you were." He said as he snapped, which let out a fire and hit Luffy in the shoulder.

"Luffy!" Everyone called out as he held his arm.

"I'm okay…" He said as he looked at his arm, only to see something purple where the bullet hit. "The hell?"

"That's a special poison that comes in contact when extreme heat meets blood." He explained. "You have about five minutes to live, unless your partner agrees to come with us and all our lives will be spared."

"Oi! Marimo! Do something!"

"It's useless…"

"Nani?"

"After he saw the key word on the photograph, his functions awakened and commanded his body to be stilled. The only thing he can move is his head.

"Bastard…" Zoro managed to say as he could feel his body wasn't responding to anything that he wanted it to do.

"Roronoa… you already saw your partner die before your eyes once… Can you take that sense of loss again with your new partner?"

"Luffy!" Vivi cried out as Luffy fell to the ground, panting and the wound was getting worse as his arm was almost completely purple and the rest was spreading out his body.

"Shit! It's spreading!" Franky said as Chopper looked at him.

"It's a rare poison! I can't slow it down!" Chopper said.

"I have the antidote." Crocodile said as he held up a vial. "But Roronoa has to agree to come with us before I could give it to you."

"You bastard…" Sanji said as Zoro managed to get up and crawled to the man's feet.

"Zoro…" Ace said as he knew what the other was going to do.

"Is this your way of agreeing?" Crocodile asked.

"Don't screw with my partner…" Zoro said as he looked up and glared at the man. "If that antidote doesn't work, I'll kill myself!"

The man sighed. "You're already half dead once…" He said as he threw the vial. "Catch." He said as Vivi caught it before it hit the ground.

Chopper took it and poured the contents into the teen's mouth.

"Now then." The man said as he mentioned the other men to pick the man up from the ground and started to leave the place.

"Oi!" Sanji said as he was about to follow, only to be stopped by a smoke bomb. "Shit!" He said as he heard a helicopter from the sky light, but when he got there, it was too far for him to catch up.

Nami went out to see as well and tried to think up with her mental map of where they were heading. "The docks?" She said.

"We're going after him." Sanji said. "I may not like the guy, but what he did was pathetic even for him." He glared at the horizon. "He shouldn't have to crawl like that to save Luffy!"

"Sanji…" Nami said as she agreed.

"Oi!" Usopp called up. "Luffy is recovering, that bastard wasn't lying!"

"Good! Because we're going after them!"

"Huh?!"

"Yosha!" Franky said. "That bastard had no right to make Zoro bro beg like that!"

"I'm coming too!" Brook said as he came out.

"Okay."

"I'll come too." Nami said. "I know the quickest route to get there."

"Okay."

Usopp nodded as he looked back to see the others. "You stay here and watch over Luffy, we're going after them to the docks."

"Be careful!" Vivi said as she looked at Luffy, who was getting some of his natural color back, but was sweating profoundly.

"Yosh!" Usopp said as he and everyone ran to the docks.

-XxX-

By the time they got there, they searched everywhere, but no sign of them.

"Where did those bastards go!?" Franky said.

"I'm sure they went this way!" Nami said as she was just as frustrated.

"Shit!" Sanji said as he kicked some crates. "Where did they take that Marimo!?"

-XxX-

Somewhere else, Zoro was just waking up as he felt that he was strapped onto something and a single light was over his head.

"I see you're finally awake." Said Crocodile in the dark.

"Where the hell am I? Is Luffy going to be okay!?"

"Don't worry… I wouldn't go back on my word, especially since I know that he would never find you."

"Where is this place?"

"That's not much of your concern. Now just relax as Dr. Vegapunk comes by and finish up what was left off, before you were taken out."

"What the hell is going on!?"

"You'll see…" Crocodile said as he left the room and the other was left alone with no idea where he was.

Zoro mentally kicked himself for being so easy to be captured, but his worry for his friend was far greater than that. "Luffy… Please be okay…"

-XxX-

Back in the base, Luffy was making a breakthrough in his recovery as he opened his eyes and saw everyone, but Zoro.

"Guys… Where's-" He coughed as Ace shushed him.

"We tried to go after them Luffy." Sanji explained. "Nami said they were heading towards the docks, but when we got there, we looked everywhere but there wasn't a sign of a helicopter there or anything. I'm sorry Luffy…"

"No…" He said as he started to cry. "No… Why Zoro…?"

Robin and Franky looked at each other and sighed. "We… may have an idea…" Franky said.

"What?" Nami said.

"When Shanks was still here and when Zoro became a part of our group, he asked us to do some underground research work…" Robin said.

"And we found something…" Franky said.

Luffy struggled to get up as he looked at the two. "And?"

"The files are in the office."

"Go get them and explain it to everyone." Luffy said. "And that's an order." He added as the two left to get it. But before they returned he blacked out and fell into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

Okay! For the first story I'll be working on for the fairytale twist is... "Lady and the Tramp"! Next would be "Aladdin", "Thumbellina", and "Sleeping Beauty". For the others that were supposed to be mentioned through the PMs (which only two people did out of 6) would be "Beauty and the Beast", "Fox and the Hound", and "Swan Lake" or for some of you non ballet people "The Swan Princess". That's all I have for you for today. I'm working on the other fics, but I need a break. Thanks again and Happy New Year!


	21. Still Human

Chapter 21: Still Human

#-+-#

Everyone waited for Luffy to wake up again, which he did and his health improved more with the extra rest.

He looked around, hoped it was a dream, but he didn't see his partner and the look on his nakama's faces further proved the horrid truth as he looked at Robin and Franky. "You have something?" He asked as the two composed themselves.

"It's a bit difficult to simplify it to simple terms." Robin warned.

"Do the best you can." Luffy said seriously as he waited patiently for the explanation.

"When Zoro joined, Shanks-san asked us to find out more about Zoro. Such as who created him, why, and why would the person throw him out. But as it turns out he was once a living being like all of us, but…"

"He was close to death, like in that picture." Luffy said, remembering that picture after that message.

"Yes… But it looks like he was only dead for only a few minutes before Crocodile had a special staff that allowed him to live long enough to be considered alive." Robin said.

"And that's the last thing a dying person would want. Keeping him alive in that condition is just torture." Franky said. "And I should know, I went through that shit when I was younger."

"So how did he become to think he's a Guard Droid? All of us didn't know he was human." Sanji asked.

"It seems that the method to create a Guard Droid can also restore damaged tissue." Robin said as she brought out the smaller version of the picture. "If you look at the picture, the bullet wounds are no doubt fatal, except for a few things."

"What's that?" Chopper asked.

"The areas were Zoro-san was shot, they're only to immobilize him, but that also results in blood loss and shock. But it also seems that it was very traumatic that it caused his mind to mentally lock away that memory leading to that day."

"Which is why he didn't remember anything before he woke up and saw Luffy. And the reason why he knows his own name when others were given a name." Vivi said, getting it.

"Yes, he was convinced that he was one, another mentally adaptive function he must've had. He let his mind fill up what he believes is adequate information, and all of us were very intent on thinking that he's a Guard Droid, and Luffy found him at the place where they were made, so naturally he took this identity and filled up any information we spout out and accepted the ones that seem the most logical."

"He's good, even he doesn't know it." Sanji said.

"You could see it as that, but from what Franky and I can dig up was that, Zoro went through much more before being placed into the capsule where the creator believed was his project."

"Like what?" Usopp asked as he gulped.

"From what I found out in the records, they have a specialist doctor with them, and planted what seems like a chip in his brain. A control device you could say."

"Control?" Luffy said.

"What for?" Vivi asked.

"Zoro is one of the best assassins in his given field. With the 'added training' we gave him…"

"Oh shit…" Sanji said. "We practically trained an already deadly guy to be worse."

"That's not even the worst of it."

"What do you mean?" Usopp asked, getting really scared.

"The same chip that can control him, can suppress memorize to the point where he can forget entirely." She said. "And with an ability like that…"

"He will believe he's super human when he's only half that." Franky said. "Again, I can almost relate to that, but not to that extent."

"But that's not the bad thing, is it?" Luffy said, looking at Robin.

She sighed. "If any damage caused, they can just place him in the tank they just recently recreated for their own use and practically reuse him over and over."

"Oi, he does have a limited life thing!" Sanji said. "He's still human after all!"

"That's the thing… They found a way to extend his life, even his youth, to a point. They're not exactly sure because Zoro is basically an over specified guinea pig in all this."

"Shit!" Sanji said as he kicked a trash bin. "And we let those bastards take him! And we've seen what he can do! This city as a better chance in surviving an earthquake than have that guy roam around!"

"Wait a sec!" Nami said. "If Zoro really does have that chip, there has to be a tracker on it, couldn't we hack some system and find him that way?"

"It could be possible, but I doubt that Crocodile would allow such a thing to happen." Robin said. "We may end up hurting Zoro if we tried anything that regards anything technical."

"So what do we do?" Vivi asked. "We can't leave Zoro with them."

The group looked at Luffy who turned to his brother. "Ace, you think you can get a hold of him?"

"I think I can. It'll be risky though, knowing that guy."

"I can do it myself, but…"

"I understand." Ace said as he got up. "I'll be back in a few hours. Getting that guy alone is more work than talking to him."

"Just come back safely."

"Will do." He said as he left the room.

"What was that about?" Franky asked.

"Everyone, go do your jobs, maybe there's some clues while you're out. Now go."

"Luffy…" Vivi was about to say when Nami placed a hand on her.

"Yes, Captain." Nami said as she shooed all but Chopper and Brook. "One of us can handle your jobs."

"Thanks Nami…" Luffy said.

Nami nodded. "We'll find him, Luffy. You did choose him and he's part of this group now. He's Nakama." She smiled. "Besides, he owes me for worrying about him."

Luffy managed to smile at that. "I don't think he'll like that."

"Tough!" She said as she left.

Luffy laid back on the bed and looked up at the ceiling, where he could see the stick on glow in the dark stars, wondering where Zoro is and if he's okay.

-XxX-

Somewhere in the city, within the dark, Zoro woke up, strapped in a chair and looking worse for wear, there were probs on his forehead and he looked like he went on a triathlon.

"Interesting…" Said a scientist.

"What is it?"

"It seems he refuses to let go of something. He's mentally fighting the treatments I'm giving him to suppress his memories."

"Couldn't you wipe it all away?"

"I could do a force amnesia, but not in his weakened state. It's far too difficult to find or recreate a damaged brain. A minor damage would take a year, not to mention the re-learning course if it were to come to that."

"I see…" Crocodile said as he looked at the monitors where the man was seen in the middle of the screen. "He truly is a remarkable being, isn't he? An assassin with a warrior's spirit fit for a soldier."

Zoro, in the meanwhile, whispered and thought over and over the one thing that made sense to him. "Luffy…" He didn't know why the name was important, but he kept saying it like if it was a prayer. "Luffy… Luffy… Luffy…" He fell into an uncomfortable sleep, the name still ringing in his unconscious mind, as if wanting it to be the only thing in his mind right now.


	22. Common Enemy

Chapter 22: Common Enemy

#-+-#

Smoker was in his office doing paper work. It was nearing midnight and he was the only one in the building in the police headquarters. He sighed as he got up to grab another cup of coffee and walked out of his room. When he came back however, he saw that he wasn't alone. "What the hell are you doing here? Portgus?"

Ace just smiled easily as he briefly looked at the papers on the desk before finding them boring and looked at the man. "Come now, Smokey, I think you're allowed to call me Ace, right?"

"Don't make me repeat myself, Portgus."

Ace pouted. "Still difficult I see." He said as he sat on the desk. "Ya know, you almost killed my brother sometime back."

Smoker sighed. "I didn't give the orders, I just had a couple dumbass rookies."

"Ah."

"And you disappeared for some time."

"I got back not too long ago." He said with a smile. "Now down to business."

Smoker was waiting, his hand on his gun if he needs to fire.

"Oi, oi, no need to be hostile." He said. "I just wanna talk for some information."

"You're asking me, a cop, to tell you, a damn Runner, information?"

"I know, strange isn't it, but it's really important."

"And why should I tell you anything?"

Ace then got serious. "You heard the name, Crocodile?"

Smoker looked at the other. "What about him?"

"I asked you first. I know you do work that your superiors don't find necessary, and that ticks you off as well as annoy them. So I'll say again, what do you know about Crocodile?"

Smoker could see the seriousness of the other's face and went over to his file cabinet, took out a file, and handed it to the other. "Crocodile, code named Mr. Zero, is an underground merchant dealer, but he's been expanding lately. What that is I still have trouble finding out. But he's embezzling millions of belis with his operation, but somehow only gets a slap on the hand every time he goes on trial." He sighed as he leaned up against the wall. "I've been trying to nail that son of a bitch for ten years…" He then looked up to the other. "Why are you asking me about him?"

"That son of a bitch almost poisoned my brother to death to get Zoro. And now Zoro's missing along with Crocodile."

"Why would he want with your brat of a brother's partner?"

"Because he was once a hired assassin, then Crocodile set up so that he would almost die but not too much to actually pass, and before he got a chance to get a hold of him, Luffy found him… Where the Guard Droids were being made."

"What are you saying? That this Zoro is a Guard Droid?"

"Yes and no…"

"It's either one or the other, Portgus."

"Yes, because he does have the abilities that a Guard Droid has, but no at the same time because he's still human, just…" Ace had a thoughtful look to try and explain to the man. "I don't know what to describe it to tell you the truth, but I'll tell you one thing…" He looked at the man seriously. "That Zoro has had experience as both assassin and a Runner, and if Crocodile has a way to manipulate control over him, what do you think this city will face?"

Smoker stared at the other with the same serious look. "The city will go to hell… And none of my men, or anyone on the force can barely keep up with you guys as it is…"

"That's exactly our fear as well. We're not killers, as you well know, but this is something that even we're not sure of." Ace sighed. "And this is Luffy's partner… And partners stick together."

"You're worried that your brother would get hurt?"

"I wouldn't be a good brother if I didn't worry." He said as he got off of the desk and handed back the file. "I came here to let you know what I know. And to know what you have. Any other leads to where he might be located?"

Smoker sighed as he mentioned the other to follow him. He walked to another room where there was a large map on the table of the city. "Do you have an idea where he might've gone?"

"Nami said the docks…" Ace said as he headed up to the table and pointed out the docks. "Here."

Smoker looked to where the man pointed as he took a pen out and started to make note of it as he stared at the map for a moment before grabbing his dogtag and used it as an alternative ruler as he plotted out coordinates.

Ace just stared as the other went to work before he saw the other was done.

"After ten years of looking into his case, I know exactly what his moves are." He said as he pointed to an area near the docks. "No doubt he gave you the slip when you arrived here." He pointed to the docks. "And, although you're fast, you guys can't out run a helicopter."

"Right, we can out smart you guys though." He said with a grin.

"Shut it you. Not all of us have the damn guts to do what you guys do."

Ace studied the man and nodded. "Yeah, you do run, but mostly muscular, and that can hinder when you have to jump from place to place."

Smoker's eye twitched as he continued. "He can be like sand and get pass between your fingers, but…" He pointed to the docks. "If you guys were heading in any of these directions, and he got a good lead on you, then he's most likely…" He drew a line to another area. "Here."

"But there's nothing but industrial ruins from the abandoned project."

"Exactly. A perfect getaway hiding spot." He said as he smiled and headed out of the room.

"Where you going Smokey?"

"I'm going down there and get him."

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" He said as he chased after the man. " 'Get him'? How?"

"What a cop does."

Ace stopped him by slamming the man's back onto the wall and faced him. "Look, Smokey, I know you like being the good cop that gets on people's nerves, but this thing is between that son of a bitch and my brother, which in turn I'm included. Let us take him down and take back what's stolen from my brother."

"And if you fail?"

"You'll finally get to arrest some Runners." Ace said seriously. "But knowing my brother, if you went down there and something happens to you or to Zoro, he will never live it down and possibly stay partner-less until he draws his last breath." He glared. "And I know he would rather go down fighting his friends than stand aside and watch them die without so much as lifting a finger."

Smoker did a glare of his own as he stared at the man before him before sighing. "Fine… I'll let you handle this… But you should know, Crocodile isn't just a powerfully rich man."

"We figured." Ace said as he let the man go. "Thank you. We'll get this Crocodile and hand him to you, free of charge."

"You're not making me a damn customer."

Ace grinned. "But us Runners do service of retrieving. And we're going after the same person, why not let us retrieve this bastard for you and you can take all the credit. We don't mind."

Smoker growled. "Just get out of my sight." He said as the man chuckled.

"It's great being back home." He said as he ran out of the room.

Smoker didn't bother going after the young man, for he knows that the Runners have uncanny abilities that even he has troubled wrapping his head around it. "Damn it, Ace…"


	23. Something Off

Chapter 23: Something Off...

#-+-#

"Well?" Crocodile said to the doctor, who was typing something up on the computer and looking over at the man on the screening monitor.

"I'm just prepping the machine to suppress his memory from when he woke up."

"Will he be able to get the memories back if something reminds him of anything?"

"Possibly, but not to worry…" He said as he pressed a button and they both watched the man struggle and scream where he was on the screen. "It will be a while before he can go out to the world. And when he meets them again he wouldn't be able to recall them as part of their group."

"But there's still the possibility…"

"Yes, but like I said, it's nothing to worry about." The scientist said as the screaming stopped. "He should be ready." He pressed a button and went up to the mike. "Bring him to his room. He should be back on his feet in a few hours."

"That easy?"

"That easy."

-XxX-

The next day, in the meeting room, Luffy and the group planned their way to get to the area that Ace mentioned to them after returning from talking to Smoker.

"We should also be careful about any traps or alarms." Nami said, looking troubled as she was not familiar with that area.

"It's definitely not the kind of area we're used to." Robin mentioned.

"Or any kind of Runner group." Sanji hinted. "Hell, it's not even around our usual routes in this city."

"That's because there's no reason to go there." Luffy said. "It's just rusting steel and unfinished plans. It's dangerous if anyone tries to hide out in there." He was serious about this, and everyone knew that when he's like this, something was going to happen.

If they received anything from their clients, they were immediately sent to another group to handle. Getting Zoro back was their first and upmost priority for them.

"Don't forget, this is Crocodile we're dealing with." Ace said. "Smokey said that this guy can get out of a trial with only a slap on the wrist. No doubt that if something goes wrong-"

"Not gonna happen." Luffy said as he looked at his brother then at the rest of the group. "We're going to head there then check around the area for any traps, alarms, or a way in. And if there's anyone in your way, let us know right away and we'll help." He sighed as he mentioned everyone to move out.

"Guys!" He called out as they ran together in a group. "Us Runners are not known to fight or carry weapons to hurt or kill. But this is something that can't be avoided." He looked at his nakama. "Us Runners only have one job: to retrieve what the client asks us to retrieve. But this time there's no client or pay for this special retrieval! For this is personal to all of us as nakama!"

"Aye!" Everyone called out as they reached to the last building closest to the area.

"We would have to get to the ground and walk from here." Nami said.

"Okay." He said as he and the group went inside the building and entered the elevator. 'Zoro…' He thought as he breathed to keep himself calm. He can't afford to charge in like he would usually do. He has to do this right.

-XxX-

Back in the unknown underground area, Zoro was waking up on a simple cot and looked around in a daze.

"I see you're awake."

He looked to see Crocodile, but he looked confused as well as alarmed.

"Do you know who you are?"

He blinked, realizing he didn't know, but there was something in the back of his mind that was nagging him, but couldn't bring it up.

"Your name is Roronoa Zoro, and you're my assassin, the best actually."

"Roronoa Zoro… Sounds about right…" He said as he eyed the man.

"Don't believe me?"

"Why am I here? If what you say is true?"

"Why, I just helped you out from the brink of death. You were quite a miracle."

"A miracle?" He said with a scoff. "Don't make me laugh."

"It's true. You were riddled with bullet holes for all you know. Miraculously, you were alive long enough for us to treat you and healed quickly. But as you and I both know that experienced paid a heavy price on that memory of yours."

He relaxed a bit, knowing this is true. He can't recall what happened or why he was here, but he has a feeling that he shouldn't rely on everything the man before him says. "You said I'm an assassin. In what style am I most suitable for?"

Crocodile smiled as he stepped aside to show three katanas. "You're special skill is wielding three katanas at once, and be able to jump from building to building."

"Excuse me? I may not have memories, but that sounds way too farfetched."

Crocodile chuckled. "Oh I assure you, you can do just that." He said as he lit his cigar. "Now, rest up, you'll be going out to stretch your legs. I'm giving you a pretty easy job so you can gain back your momentum." With that he left the other in the room.

Zoro stared at the door as he looked around his surroundings, where there was only a simple desk with some items on it. He got up and looked to see that there wasn't much on the desk besides extra clothes and a necklace. He picked up the necklace and felt like there was something special about it. He recalled someone giving it to him, but the face and voice were a complete mystery to him. "Something isn't right here…" He said as he placed the necklace on. "But what choice do I have except follow what that guy says." He didn't seem too happy at the thought of it.


	24. Not There

Chapter 24: Not There

#-+-#

"This is getting us nowhere!" Sanji said through the headphone as he and Usopp looked around their area for the fifth time.

"I'm not picking anything up from this area." Franky said through his headphone as Robin studied the area with hardly any vigor.

"I'm not picking any kind of scent here…" Chopper said as he and Brook sat on a rock.

"You sure that cop told you it was here?" Nami asked as she and Vivi were carefully examining the rubble.

"He said it could be around here. But it looked too good to be true… It was obvious after all." Ace said as he looked to where his brother is as he continued to search. "Oi, Luf! We checked everywhere, and it's getting really late."

"I'm not leaving."

"Luffy! He may not even be here. Let's head back."

"He's here! I know it!" He shouted as he lifted a rock and chucked it to the side.

"Luffy…" Ace said, not knowing what else to say that could make his little brother stop his search. But he knew the other wasn't going to stop anytime soon until he completely exhausted himself. "Guys, Luffy isn't giving up…" He said through the earpiece. "Look again, switch places if you have to…"

"Okay…" Were the responses he heard as he searched as well.

-XxX-

It was well into the night when Luffy collapsed to his knees.

"Luffy!" Ace called as he went up to his brother, who pounded the ground.

"Damnit! Damnit! Damnit!" He shouted as he pounded his head to the ground. "Damnit all!"

"Oi, Luffy, chill!" He said as he stopped the other from pounding his head on the ground.

"Zoro's my partner damnit! What kind of partner am I if I can't help him!" He said as he glared at his brother. "I don't care if he's completely forgotten about me! I'm getting him back no matter what!"

"I know that Luf…" Ace said as he glared at the other. "But what good is a partner and leader if you push yourself to the point where you can't move? You're wasting your energy from all the searching, and none of us had anything to eat since lunch. Plus it's dark out and it's bad enough that we can't see where we're going…"

Luffy knew that, he knew that hours ago, but he didn't want to leave his partner with the man who took him away.

"Luffy, listen, I know you hate to leave anyone behind. But Crocodile went through a lot of trouble to get him, and I don't think he'll hurt him as long as he obeys the bastard."

"But what if… He completely forgets?" Luffy said. "I have to get him away from that bastard…"

"I know Luffy… I would do the same thing, but I know what my limits are, and right now we've reached to the point where we have to go back… I'm sorry… We'll try again though… I'm going to see Smoker again and let him know about this, maybe he was the one who's wrong, I don't know."

Luffy was silent for a moment before he reluctantly nodded. "… Okay…"

Ace let everyone know that they were heading back and helped the other up. "We'll find him, and we will get him back."

Luffy still didn't look up at his brother as he looked around the area. 'I'm sorry Zoro…' He thought. 'Please don't forget me…'

-XxX-

Somewhere else, Zoro had a strange feeling come over him. He looked around and saw that he was alone in his room. He checked around the small area for anything, but found nothing to be suspicious of. He laid back down and looked at the necklace. 'Why does this seem so important to me?' He thought as he sighed. 'If only I can remember…' He went to his side and stared at the wall, as if to blame it for his unanswered question. 'I know there's something wrong here, but what?' He growled. 'And I know that I'm not going to get my answers here.' He got up and head over to the door to bang on it, knowing that it was locked. "Oi! Let me out of here! I'm bored as hell in here!" He called out as he continued to bang on the door.

Soon the sound of a door being unlocked was heard and he was faced with Crocodile.

"What seems to be the problem?"

"I'm bored as hell in here. And if I didn't know any better, you're keeping me in here like a caged animal. And I hate not knowing what the hell is going on."

The man chuckled. "I've heard that you were pretty impatient when it comes to things like this." He said as he looked down at his watch. "It's still very late and we don't want anything to happen to you again."

"What happened?"

"I told you, you were riddled with bullet holes when we brought you in. It took us quite a while before you were deemed stable to walk among us living persons."

Zoro looked at the man, as if reading the man's face.

"Don't believe me?"

"Hard to say…" He said. "I don't remember anything other than waking up…"

Crocodile smiled as he was about to pat the other's shoulders, only for the other to move aside. "Don't liked to be touched, huh?"

"Response reflex… I guess…" He said as he felt more uncomfortable with the man than before.

Crocodile shrugged his shoulders. "Think nothing of it." He said as he turned. "You'll get a taste of what you'll be doing tomorrow, for now just rest." He said as he closed the door and locked it.

'He's hiding something…' Zoro thought, very annoyed that he was locked into the room again. 'And how the hell am I going to sleep with this nagging feeling?' He thought as he sat down on the cot while fingering the necklace. He had a passing thought about running and jumping over the world and sighed. "Maybe I do jump over buildings…" He said. "It's better than being in here…" He growled. "But why am I being restless!"

-XxX-

Somewhere else Crocodile was watching the monitor and sighed. "It seems he hasn't forgotten completely."

"He's forgotten the people, but not the experience. That's what you wanted, was it not?" Said the doctor.

"Yes, but it seems he's going to be more difficult to manipulate this way…"

"It's only temporary." Said the doctor. "It's only the first day since the treatment after all. In the matter of a week those restless feelings will dwindle to only a passing feeling."

"Anything that could hinder this?"

"Seeing those people before he fully forgets them. Even remembering a name can have significant ability to go against you, once again."

Crocodile nodded. "I see…" He chuckled. "It's a good thing we moved from that rust bucket that you were so fond of."

"Well a procedure this delicate calls for a drastic change in scenery." The scientist said.

"Indeed." He said as he walked out of the room. "Inform me of any changes."

"Will do."

-XxX-

In the police headquarters, Smoker was working late once again, only to receive an unexpected visit from Ace once more in his office.

"He wasn't there." Ace said with a serious face that Smoker didn't question it.

"Damn it… Must've moved when he got what he wanted…" He said as he looked at his coffee. "Did you find any sort of clue?"

"We'll leave that to you." He said as he straightened. "If you find anything, drop an anonymous note to us." He placed a card on the man's desk. "Both of us are after Crocodile, but let us deal with him while you arrest his ass. We don't need the damn award, we want our comrade back. That's all." He started to head out when the officer stopped him.

"Why are you helping?"

"He hurt my brother to get Zoro to go to him. And now he hurts my brother by keeping him away." He said with such anger that it irked the officer. "If you guys weren't after him, then I would've had the honor to kill that bastard." He left after that, leaving the officer to stand there.

"Well shit…" He said as he looked at the lone card on the table. "Guess there's some things that can't be avoided."


	25. Meeting

Chapter 25: Meeting

#-+-#

A month passed and Luffy was out on his own in the city. He had left his ear piece in his room so that he wouldn't hear his nakama trying to convince him to come back to the base. He had been running solo after they couldn't find Zoro that one day. He had so much hope in finding his best friend and partner, only to be crushed to the point that he wasn't himself. And thus started the solo run from building to building.

He let the others take his jobs as he wasn't feeling much up to doing such things without the other. He would enter buildings and cause some surprise, but no one decided to go after him or try to shoot him down. He was just running and causing a bit of a scene in the office areas.

It was getting close to sunset, but he stopped at one building to watch it. He thought back on the time when he and Zoro watched the sunset and the city with the lights on. That moment seemed so perfect then, and it was a painful reminder of what he would miss now that his partner is missing and possibly forgotten about him. Just the thought of seeing the other look at him like a stranger hurts him.

-XxX-

Soon it was midnight and the night sky fortuned him with the bright full moon to light his way on the buildings. The cold air kept him awake as he jumped from building to building until he felt one of his sandals giving out.

"Damn…" He said as he stopped at one building to do some repair work when the roof door opened and he looked back to see a black clad figure wearing a black bandana. But what got his attention was the three katanas on the man's left side.

The man turned and green eyes met brown.

"Zoro?" He said as he stood up and waited for the other to say anything at this point.

The man blinked as he got one hand on one of his katanas. "Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

Luffy felt the hurt he expected to feel when he heard the other asked that. But he was glad the other hasn't attacked him. "You really don't remember me…"

"Why should I?" He asked calmly.

Luffy didn't know what to do when he noticed the other was wearing the necklace he gave him for Christmas. "You're still wearing the necklace I gave you."

Zoro blinked as he knew he was wearing the necklace. He'd been wearing it without thinking it most of the time, finding some odd comfort from it. "You gave me this necklace?"

"Yeah… Last Christmas…"

Zoro stared at the teen and felt… relieved and confused. He felt a sense of nostalgia but he didn't take another step or put his guard down. "That was months ago, right?"

Luffy nodded. "Yeah…" He said as he fingered the pirate earring that the other got him. "And you gave me this, remember?" He said as he let the other see it a bit better.

'What's with this guy?' Zoro thought as he did get a look of the earring and did feel another form of nostalgia before looking at the teen. 'He can clearly see that I can kill him easily with three swords, but he's standing there and talking to me as if we're old friends. Why can't I move my body to at least give him a warning? And why do I feel that I've seen him somewhere?'

"So, Zoro, what are you doing out here?"

Zoro blinked as he shook his head. "None of your concern." He said as he looked around before looking at the teen. "I don't care who you are, but if I see you again when I'm in a hurry, you're dead."

Luffy just smiled. "If you can catch me first. I'm a Runner you know."

"And I'm an assassin."

"Then why didn't you kill me? Aren't assassin's supposed to be like ninjas or something? Kill anyone who's seen them and what not?"

Zoro lifted a brow. "Are you challenging me if I have the will to kill?"

"I know you could, without a second thought."

"Really?" He said as he straightened, but still had his hand on his katana. "And how do you even know about me?"

Luffy smiled. "Remember my name and I'll tell you."

"I don't know who the hell you are!"

"Course you do, but that bastard made you forget."

Zoro blinked, looking a bit lost at the teen before him.

"You do know me, Zoro, that's why you haven't taken your katana out and kill me when we saw each other. If you had truly forgotten me, then you would've left my corpse a long time ago."

Zoro knew the other spoke the truth with that logic, but he still didn't get what makes this teen have him act this way.

Luffy smiled as he pointed at the other. "You know I'm right, but at the same time don't know it yet." He said. "And that's okay, I can wait until you can remember. Just don't tell that bastard that you've met me. He'll just make sure you never come out again." He went up to the other until he was only a step away from his confused partner. "We'll meet again, Zoro, that I know for sure. And even though you say you'll kill me when we meet again, I'll still come up to you like this."

"You a nut?"

Luffy smiled. "Do you think that?"

Zoro was taken aback on how the childish teen was acting so mature around him. He felt no ill will from the other and took his hand off of his katana. And he did think the other was a bit crazy for coming this close to an assassin, but somehow he didn't think the other was insane either. "No…"

Luffy wanted to hug the other so badly, but he only took a step back and smiled sadly when he knows that he can't force the other to come back with him back to the base or try to get the other to remember. "I have to get back to my nakama. I'll keep our meeting a secret if you do the same. We've looked for you once, only for that bastard to take you somewhere else." He adjusted his hat. "I won't force you to remember me, but try to think about it a bit when you have time."

"Why?" Zoro asked, not getting the change in the teen's mood.

Luffy looked up at the other, unshed tears threatening to come down. "Because you're a very special person to me, Zoro. I don't want to hurt you, ever."

Zoro was surprised to hear this. "What are you saying?"

Luffy shook his head. "I told you, I won't force you to remember, so I can't tell you what I'm saying." He looked up and smiled. "I know Zoro will figure it out, you're a very smart guy when you want to be."

Zoro was going to say something when the other ran to the side of the building and jumped. "Oi!" He called out as he went to the side and saw the other was already at the next building and quickly jumped and grabbed the pipe to the next building. He saw the other stop at the roof of that building and waved at him before leaving once again. "Who are you…?" He said to himself as he could feel the words trying to escape, but something was blocking it.

He had the feeling of going after the teen to get answers from him. But he knew Crocodile would be waiting for him with news of his new kill. He didn't feel himself when he killed people Crocodile told him to. But he didn't know what else to do. And now he's met up with someone who knows about him and the other wouldn't say a thing other than that he should try to remember.

He fingered the necklace and thought about what the other said. 'A few months ago… And I've been working with Crocodile for a month…' He thought with a frown. 'That bastard is hiding something from me. But that guy said to not mention this meeting. Did that bastard do something? And that guy was somehow involved?' He sighed as he rubbed his temple. 'So many questions… If only I could remember…' His thoughts were interrupted by the vibrations of his cell phone and answered it. "Yeah?"

"Did you manage to get the job done?" Crocodile said, not sounding patient.

"Yeah, I did. Just enjoying the night view here."

"Aren't you poetic… Get your ass back here. Can't let anyone know you were there."

"Right…" He said as he turned off the phone and jumped to another building. 'Something's definitely off…'

* * *

I'm so sorry everyone that I haven't updated in months. I've been hitting a lot of writer's blocks and I've also kept having an idea for my newest fic for Hetalia. And then there's OMGKITTY's boyfriend's belated/Robin's birthday gift fic to work on, and I'm getting the feeling of being spent. But I got at least these new chapters up to let you guys know that I'm not dead, and... yeah. Hope you guys are doing well and... later.


	26. Slightly Remembering

Hello everyone!

Sanji: Ah! Cupid-chwan!

What have I told you about that nickname? *waves it off* Anyway, sorry for the long wait. I actually had to make a difficult choice to make when making these five chapters. Then I got busy in my real life things like school, and all that 'fun' stuff...

Sanji: The point of the matter is, is that you're here.

Thanks Sanji, and now the chapters. Hope you like them, I'm going to try to catch up on the others so... still be patient. And again, I had to make a few difficult choices when doing the last two chapters of this bunch.

* * *

Chapter 26: Slightly Remembering

#~+~#

A few weeks went by and Zoro was nowhere near the answer he was looking for. Ever since he met that strange boy, strange and distorted dreams started to come. But even though most of his dream was distorted, the boy was clear to him as the blades on his katanas.

He kept an eye on Crocodile, who told him that he's an assassin, and had papers to prove it. But he knew that something was off with all this. He knew most of what the bastard said is true, but he could tell that there were a lot of lies there as well.

There was also another thing that kept bothering him since he met that strange young man. He can't stop thinking about him. It annoyed him, but also gave him some stability. He just had to see him again, but with his occupation, he has to report to the bastard before he leaves and after his kill.

Needless to say, he doesn't like to be cooped up in a pitiful hole they call his room and only let out like a caged bird.

"Crocodile!" He called out one day, pissed and he wanted it to show to the man who caused him to feel like this.

"What is it? Roronoa-san?"

"I feel like a fucking caged animal! Only going in and out when someone feels good and ready to. And when I do feel like going out, even though I don't have a mission, I have to let you know like you're my damn parent. Quite frankly, I don't like the idea of having the damn leash on when you already got me in the damn collar!"

Crocodile sighed, knowing that if he tried to take total control over Zoro, then there's the possibility that the man will screw up on an order or the like. At least the doctor said so if they try to do so after finally getting Zoro to forget his past life. 'I don't think we can wait five more months…' He thought as he knew the man seemed suspicious with the whole thing since he woke up with no memory. The best he can do is to give a little until the time comes.

Once he had decided, he sighed and picked up a bracelet and threw it to Zoro. "Here, it's a tracker for me to look at where you are and there's a button for communication." He said, knowing it was just a prototype for something else entirely, and then came with an idea. "You shouldn't be so suspicious of me. I planned on letting you out whenever you want, but as I mentioned before… You are the best assassin there is, and if anything were to happen, basically everything will be out of order." He said with a smile. "I have to work on that and make it so that you'll be able to wear it and not be suspected of anything."

"Can I use it now?" Zoro asked, wanting to test the man's word.

Crocodile laughed. "Of course! It's ready for its first test run anyway. Go ahead, Roronoa-san, run out for few hours, but don't cause trouble, understand?"

"Low profile, I know…" He said as he placed the bracelet on. 'Still feel like a wolf with a collar on.' He thought as he left the room to grab the case that can carry all three of his katanas and left the hide out.

-XxX-

With Luffy, he just finished up his job for the day and was hangout out on one of the roof tops. Ever since encountered Zoro, his outlook started to turn for the better, but he was still a bit hurt that his partner doesn't remember him fully. But just seeing the man that night, the assassin, and how they talked as if they were mutual acquaintances, made him believe that he hasn't fully forgotten about how to act around him. But even this helped eased his doubt, he missed talking to the man and having him by his side. He kept thinking about the first time he had met the man, back when he was really convinced that he was a Guard Droid.

He knew from that point that Zoro was going to be his partner, without a doubt. He laughed when he remembered when he had to bathe Zoro, and even blushed when he remembered the nude man, how beautifully sculptured he was. He was never did get art critics, but if he could compare with da Vinci's David with Zoro, then the latter was far more impressive than that of the statue.

Then he remembered how he got Zoro to wake up and blushed more by the thought of it, and that included the Christmas Mistletoe incident. He never thought back on it until after Zoro was taken. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure if the man's lips were soft or warm.

Then he thought about all the times they have done together in their missions and smiled at how amazing Zoro's acting abilities were on that one case with the hostaged girl. And sighed when he remembered the times where Zoro surprised him when they were cornered and they reached to the next building that was impossible unless he was a Guard Droid.

He sighed and stared up at the sky, wondering what the man is doing now.

Since he found out what Zoro has been doing since his capture, he would sometimes hear on the news who was killed and their significance. He knew that Crocodile was getting rid of some competition by using Zoro to permanently get rid of. He didn't like how the man was using him, but as long as the man doesn't fully remember, he has no choice but accept it. But it hurt to know that the man he cares for so much was someone who kills because he was told to. It wasn't like his partner, and he can't really fault him for that due to what Crocodile has done to him.

He sighed heavily and laid back onto the hard cement rooftop and closed his eyes, feeling a nap coming in and soon enough he was asleep.

-XxX-

Zoro, meanwhile, wandered around the city until he came across an abandoned building project building and felt a familiarity and went towards it.

_"This is the perfect spot for those who are starting out."_

He thought he heard a woman's voice, but as he looked around, he was the only one there. He rubbed his head as he saw the beginning of the stair case.

_"Trust me, this is only the easiest part of the course."_

He thought he heard the young man, but it was his head again. "What the hell?" He said quietly as he looked at the staircase again and felt the need to run up to where it will lead.

_"Ready? Go!"_

He went off and ran up the stairs, and he didn't stop until he saw the last door, opened it, and he thought he saw a woman with black blue hair there before the illusion disappeared. He wondered what he saw until he heard the young man once again.

_"That board over there is one of the many options I can use to get from here to that building over there!"_

He looked to see the board and then at the tall building.

_"Use your eyes!"_

He looked and saw the pipes that looked like you can grab if you can jump and reach there. His head started to pound as pieces of what seem like memories came to him. "I've… been here…" He said as he looked at the board and then at the pipes, ran towards the board, jumped off from it, and grabbed the pipes.

When he got to the top, he thought he saw the young man again before the illusion disappeared. He got onto the roof top of the building and looked around. "I… recognized this place." He said as he looked back and down at the building he was on earlier. "Whatever my memories about jumping from building to building, started here… And that guy…" The thought of the young man from that night was clear in his mind before refocusing on the present. "If I continue this, I may find a bit about my missing memories…" He decided as he looked around and, with a sense of familiarity, doing the course the second time.

-XxX-

Not long after that, the whole thing became second nature as he started to regain back pieces of his memory as the distorted images started to become clear, but the names still eluded him. And for a while he was simply running with no destination in mind or why he continued to go, but soon he ended up in a building and running up to the roof. Once he opened the door, he looked around, only to see the young man, asleep on the rooftop floor.

He took a moment to take deep breaths before walking up beside the sleeping young man, knelt beside him, and just stared at the peaceful sleep. He knows now that he was once a part of a group, this young man's group, and he was his partner. He didn't remember much other than those few facts, but he does know from what he does remember, is that this young man is something to him, something special, treasured even. He moved the bangs from his face, making the other stir and lazily opens his eyes.

Luffy blinked a few times before he looked to his side to see Zoro there and smiled. "Hey there Zoro, getting off from what you're doing?"

"My job requires me to head out at night." He said, his eyes locked onto dark chocolate orbs.

"Do you remember?"

"I remember the building where I first learned the basics of being a Runner, and that I'm your partner…"

Luffy smiled as he sat up. "That's great!"

"But I still don't know your name, and I don't remember anything farther than that." He said as he managed to look away and looked at another building ahead. "But I've tried to remember your name… Ever since we last met." He admitted as he fingered the necklace. "I never told Crocodile that I met you…"

"I didn't tell my nakama either, and that's hard for me because I trust them a lot. But if I told them that I met you, they would want to help me find you and bring you back before you can remember."

"I remember their faces, but I don't remember their names either."

"That's okay, you know this much now. That counts for something."

"I can fully trust you without any hesitation." He said as he looked at the other once more. "I can't leave Crocodile, even though I want to." He said as he lifted his wrist with the bracelet. "I'm his damn dog for as long as I do as he orders me to."

"That sucks."

"You have no idea."

"Zoro, my nakama and I can save you. We have a beef with Crocodile anyway, and you're our nakama too…"

"Tempting… but I don't remember anything other than what I've told you. If I go with you, Crocodile will find out. If you try to get me, he will know and who knows what will happen." He said with a sigh as he reached out a hand and petted the young man's head. "Now that I know just what kind of person you are to me, I can't risk you getting into danger that, as long as he doesn't know, you won't be a part of."

"Zoro, I jump from buildings like this and taller ones. That's risking my life a lot."

"But you know that very well. But I have yet to figure out what Crocodile wants, and sometimes not knowing is the dangerous part of anything. But I do know that it has something to do with me."

"It does… my nakama only has figured out a few things of why he would want you…" He said as he leaned his head onto the man's chest. "Zoro…" He said, not knowing what else to say, but he wanted to say something.

Zoro wrapped an arm around the other and, just for that moment, felt free to be who he wants to be. "I have to get back soon… Or he'll be suspicious."

"Right…" He said, not really wanting to let go of the other, but knew that it would only get his partner in trouble.

With that Zoro walked back to the door to head down, but not before looking back to see Luffy getting up and smiled at him.

"I hope you remember my name next time we meet."

Zoro smiled. "Don't go shopping for my replacement."

Luffy shook his head. "No one will replace you." He said with a soft smile. "You're the only person in the world I can call partner."

"That's a bit much…" He said with a smile. "But I guess I top anyone else, huh?"

Luffy laughed as they parted ways once again.


	27. Caught On

Chapter 27: Caught On

#~+~#

A few weeks went by and Crocodile was starting to see the change in Zoro, and nothing that he wanted to see.

For one thing, Zoro still kept hold of the necklace that he had when he was in the Runner's group. He was being settle about heading out to 'get out for a while', and the only kind of attitude he saw from the other was the sideways glare towards him, full of suspicions and distrust.

He went to the doctor about this and the doctor also seemed to agree that something happened and now they would have to go to desperate measures.

"We will risk him losing, not only his memory but also his functions. We will not have an assassin, but an overgrown baby that will never learn to develop again." The doctor warned.

"Tell me something I don't already know…" Crocodile said with a growl.

"Well… I have been doing some studying on mice… And I do believe there's a way to force him to forget without any danger of losing anything else."

Crocodile is intrigued. "Go on…"

"We shock only the key parts of his brain that serve the most of his memories. But the trick is actually finding what is a memory, and what is a function that allows him to perform. Which leads to my next risk is that he may end up forgetting how to perform the way he does now if we picked around the wrong way."

Crocodile sighed as he weighed the options. "I believe he may have started to try to remember… And I can't afford to lose him now. Not after getting this far." He said as he looked at the doctor. "How soon will you be prepared for this?"

"Two days at the most."

"Two days?"

"It's a delicate procedure, Mr. Crocodile, we are talking about the human mind being shocked numerous times. And we don't know how well his mind can take it before it shuts down on him."

"I see… Very well… Two days…" He said, not liking the length, but at this point he can't lose his only meal ticket to the top.

-XxX-

Meanwhile, Zoro was in his room as he looked at the necklace, thinking about the young man. He should be working out, but he'd done that for three hours straight already and his door was locked again. Thus leaving him to his thoughts. But instead of memories, he actually thought of the young man differently.

It starts off innocent enough, running beside the other, laughing with him on the roof tops, and just contently chatting about nothing that his mind came up with. But then it became something different… intimate. He would run after the other and hold him in his arms, he thought about running his hands over the felt of the young man's clothing. But the most recent thought is that one memory when he last saw him and how kissable he looked. Needless to say these thoughts were a bit confusing to him, but he kept thinking about it all the same.

He took a deep breath as he calmed his mind from that thought before it got too far. 'What's with me lately?' He thought as he looked at the necklace once more, remembering that this was the gift from the young man. He brought it to his lips and was content for a moment, but found the warmed metal not satisfying and looked around, feeling antsy.

He got up to work out again, but that didn't make the thought go away. "I need air…" His said, more of an excuse as he headed up to the door and started to pound on it before he hear it unlock and practically scared the shit out of the man who unlocked the door. "I need to get out." He said gruffly as he shoved the man out of the way.

"Ah, ah, Roronoa-san! You can't-"

"I can and I will!" He said as he marched down the hall before Crocodile came out.

"What is going on here?"

"I need air! I've been trapped in that room for who knows how long and I feel suffocated!" He said. "And I'm a bit sick and tired of it!"

"I see…" Crocodile said, also not liking this side of the assassin. "I'm sorry you feel that way. I'll get to work on making your stay here less sufferable then."

"Drop the act, Crocodile." He said, also sick and tired of always trying to lie through his teeth to the man who is obviously done something to him. "What the hell is going on and why do you need me for?"

Crocodile didn't like how this turned out at all. 'Looks like we don't have two days after all.' He thought with a sigh. "If I told you it would be a waste." He said.

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you want to know so badly?" Crocodile said, looking dangerous. "Is there someone you met outside that would like to know."

"What?" He said. "What makes you think I met anyone? Low profile, remember."

"True… but then why are you showing such disrespect to the one who has given you shelter and food."

"Like a dog."

Both men glared at each other before Crocodile grinned. "You think you're a dog?"

"The way you got me locked up, I may as well be." He said, being weary of the other's intentions.

Crocodile then snapped his fingers and guns were drawn to the swordsman. "Just how much do you remember… Roronoa?"

'Okay, it's official, this guy is a nutcase.' He thought as Crocodile laughed.

"You honestly don't remember that time, do you?"

He blinked.

"Then you must've met up with that brat then…" He stopped laughing to look at the swordsman. "When was this, and how often do you see him when you go out?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." He said, staring at the man in his way.

Crocodile knew better. "I think you do. Can you tell me his name?"

"I don't know who you're talking about!"

"I see, you don't know his name… I guess it's not as bad as I expected."

"Expect what?"

Crocodile waved it off. "None of your concern…"

"Apparently it is since I'm doing your dirty work for two months now."

"True… Well I guess it wouldn't matter if I tell you or not." The gunmen started walking closer, trapping the swordsman. "But I don't feel like telling you anything in case you somehow remember."

"So you did have something to do with my hazy memories…" He said, looking calm and collected as he sighed. "I may not remember much…" He said as he got the first katana out. "But I know I shouldn't trust you." He took out the gunmen before they realized what went on. "What now?" He said, keeping his katana out. "You and I both know these guys are nothing to what I can do."

"True… But then I got my own trump card." He said with a smirk. " 'Games Up'." He said, making the swordsman seem to lock in place.

"The hell!"

"A code word, simply." Crocodile said as he walked up to the swordsman. "You see, you were almost dead once, and thanks to some doctors, they planted a little chip in that head of yours so that if I gave out a command, you will not be able to counter no matter how hard you try." He said as he punched the man in the gut, causing the swordsman to spit out saliva from the strong impact on his gut. "Now that you showed that you're ungrateful, I have no choice but to put you in a place that you would hate even more." He looked at his men. "Take him to the storage, and lock up his katanas while you're at it." He then left the man there, unable to move. "Oh don't worry, you'll be able to regain your mobility in an hour, so relax." And with that the men dragged off the man, who was glaring at him, before turning and heading back to his office.

"It seems there needs to be something done with about that brat…" He said to himself as he took out the file he kept in case. "Monkey D. Luffy… How should I deal with you?"


	28. Something Off Again

Chapter 28: Something Off

#~+~#

Luffy was running solo once again when he felt something was really off. He stayed on one of the rooftops, wondering what was wrong. He has a sinking feeling that it was something about Zoro, and he knew it was because of Crocodile. He pressed his ear piece and got Nami.

"What's up Luffy?"

"Hey Nami, can you hook me up with Robin? I need to ask her something."

"Okay, hold on a sec."

He waited for a moment before hearing the older woman's voice. "Robin, how's your tracking of Crocodile doing?"

"I would like to say we got something, but unfortunately it seems that he's living like he's being tracked. He's very thorough about not being caught."

"Have you told Ace that?"

"Yes Luffy."

"Okay, you and Franky keep at it as best you can."

"Is everything alright?"

"I don't know. I have a bad feeling that something's happening and it isn't good."

"Is it about Zoro?"

"My first thought after feeling like this."

"We'll do our best to find a clue of his whereabouts, but so far he's like a water snake."

"Let me know when you find something."

"I will."

And with that he was disconnected with the woman. He felt really uncomfortable and he knew it would affect his running if he tried to continue. 'I'll stumble if I continue…' He thought as he contacted Nami once more and told her that he's going to be grounded and head back to the base.

"Understood, don't want you to stumble if you kept going."

"Yeah." He said as he was disconnected. 'Who will find Zoro if something happens to me?' He thought as he opened the door and headed down the many stairs to the ground floor.

He ignored the odd stares he's getting and headed outside to the busy street shadowed by the tall buildings.

-XxX-

He wandered around the street along with the other bodies when he felt suffocated and headed to the park, where it's mostly peaceful within the heart of the busy city surrounding it. It took after another city, but their buildings were not Runner friendly like this city was.

He didn't feel like going back to the base just yet and just wandered around the park until he came to a fountain. 'Such a pretty place.' He thought as he sat down on the fountain's built bench around the water.

He was just staring at the water flowing down from the top of the ornate spout, down the bowl-like tiers which then flowed down like waterfalls to the next before going back to the large poll only to repeat the cycle. He looked around to see if there was anyone around before taking off his sandals and placing his feet in the water.

He sighed at the cooling sensation on his feet, but the feeling that something was wrong acted like a boulder in his stomach. It's there and wouldn't be passing anytime soon. He wasn't even hungry because that boulder was taking up the remaining space. He hadn't felt this bad in such a long time, and even then it wasn't so bad to the point he couldn't eat.

He sighed as he scooted closer to the rim of the fountain that carried the water. He knows it's not a pool, and any park official would chase him out of the park if they caught him like this, but the water was clean and cool. He needed something like the water to clear his head of the worries that settled.

Sure he could've done it at the base in his own bathtub, but that just made him remember the time he bathed Zoro the first time he brought him to the base. He blushed at the thought of the muscular, nude of the man who became his partner and now lost from his grasp.

He sinked into the cooling clear water, barely touching his chin, took off his ear piece, and laid back into the water. He took a deep breath and leaned back until he was completely submerged into the water.

Everything became silent except for the sound of the water going down from the fountain's height.

The coolness of the water seemed to make his body go into a meditative shock as the clearness made him see the distorted sky through the ripples caused by the falling of the water. He was at peace at that moment, only to come up for air and going back down. He looked around the pale blue tiles that make up the floor of the fountain and saw something out of place. He moved to get a closer look at the oddity.

It was a dark blue tile that was a bit raised up than the other tiles. As he looked closely, it looked like a button of some sort. He turned his head up to see that he was in the shadowed part of the fountain where the ripples were more prominent, making the button tile hard to see if anyone came by to admire the fountain.

'What is this?' He thought, wanting to press it, but there was a sudden feeling of not doing so, not yet. He came out of the water and out of the fountain. Dripping wet, he looked back at the fountain and decided to return later and continued his way through the park.

-XxX-

Meanwhile, Zoro was tied and was left on the damp ground in the dark. He was able to move freely not too long ago, but that didn't help him now obviously. 'Damnit!' He thought as he had his back to the ground, feeling the moisture seeping through his shirt and pants. 'If Crocodile did mess my memories the first time, he knows about him.' He thought about the young man and felt the horrid feeling of not being there to protect him. 'He doesn't know that we've been found out either. Damnit!' He growled as he tried to get his binds to loosen for the hundredth time, but like it had been for the last hour, the ropes were expertly tied so that he would pointlessly struggle out, earning rope burns and cuts instead of freedom.

'I still don't know his name either…' He leaned his head back with a slight groan. 'I hope he doesn't do anything to be noticed… He has to live…' He can feel himself getting desperate, but he has the right to. 'What's the point in remembering a dead person's name?' He thought, which immediately felt wrong. 'No… he's not just a person… he's my… partner? No… Friend? Yeah… that's it…' He thought, feeling that this was more just than the other thought. 'There wouldn't be a point for me to remember if something were to happen to him… Anything I have left of him will disappear like it never happened…' He felt a kind of fear just then.

'I don't want that! Maybe someone else but not me! From what I could get from that kid, I had a damn good life before Crocodile made me forget! Now that I barely have a grasp of what I once remembered, he's going to do it again, this time for good!' He started to vainly struggle. 'I have to get out of here, find him before Crocodile does. I can't lose him now! He's far too important! I can't let Luffy-' He paused in his thinking as he felt a kind of shock, a revelation one could say. "Luffy…" He whispered into the darkness, and repeated that word, finding comfort and nostalgia in it. "T-That's his name… Luffy… I remember now…"

He felt happy to know this before groaning and cursing into the dark. 'Just perfect! I remember his damn name and I'm going to immediately forget it again! Fuck me and this life role!' He thought as he rolled to his side, smelling the mold. 'Luffy… Please don't get caught by him… I need you…' He felt weak, a feeling he hated, but the thought of losing his friend was stronger than his pitiful state. 'You're the only one who can save me from this… Please help me remember again if I forget you. I want to continue to be by your side.' He started to get more memories about his time with the other as well as recognized the others in the groups.

He missed the warm chaos that radiated when he was last with them. It beats the cold, damp, dark room he was in, surrounded by the lie that he had no choice but to follow before that encounter.

-XxX-

Later that evening, back in the city, Luffy was eating dinner with his nakama, but unlike the usual chaos filled with good cheer and companionship, they were silent, contemplative, and serious about what would happen within the next few hours.

He doesn't like this kind of atmosphere, but he wasn't in the mood to lift it up, because he wasn't feeling up to the usual cheer he's known for. And he can tell no one blames him for being this way.

He thought about the strange fountain he came across earlier, the strange tile button. What was it for? Where would it lead? Does he want to find out alone?

Of course the answer was obvious, especially since Nami will hurt him if he does it alone. But he feels that he has to do this alone. He's been to many missions alone and managed somehow.

'But what if Crocodile is there? His lackies? What if he found out and got Zoro to forget more to the point where Zoro wouldn't even hesitate to kill him? He sighed as he excused himself, his food hardly touched, and went to his and Zoro's room.

"Should we make sure he doesn't do anything stupid?" Nami asked.

"It's not our choice to make." Robin said as she and the others knew that their leader must've found something out, but the choice is to let them help or let him claim back Zoro alone was entirely up to him.

"He's done solo missions before." Sanji said, trying t sound convincing.

"Nothing at this level though…" Ace said as he got up.

"Where you going?" Usopp asked.

"Getting some air." He said. "At times like these, it's best to get a different perspective. And the best place to do so is to find a place to see it."

"Just be careful." Franky said.

"Will do." He said as he headed out, leaving the others in a state of contemplation.

Luffy, sitting on the edge of the pulled out bed, was also deciding what to do and thought about what to do if he did find Crocodile, or he will find something that may lead him to the whereabouts.

'Either way… I will face that bastard one way or another.' He thought, a decision made as he headed back out to where the group is.

"Hello Luffy, need something?" Chopper asked.

"I'm just going to head out for a little bit." He said as he climbed up to the roof top, leaving the rest of his nakama in silence prayer for his, and hopefully Zoro's, safe return.


	29. Inevitable

Chapter 29: Inevitable

#~+~#

Luffy arrived at the fountain once more, this time the night time made the park seem ominous and, as he entered the water, the fountain didn't keep it's simple beauty, but now a cold promise of uncertain fate replaced it.

He wasn't bothered as he felt around for the mysterious blue tile button, which stopped the fountain and opened up a trap door of some kind beside him. Most of the water went into the opening, which revealed stairs going down. 'No turning back now…' He thought as he went down the dark, damp entry.

When he reached to the last step, he was engulfed in darkness. "Nami is going to kill me for forgetting my mini light." He said with a bit of a laugh. "Now… What do I do?" He said as he went through his pockets for something, but like he expected, he didn't bring one of those small lights for this occasion. He felt around to feel a wall and walked through the darkness.

-XxX-

Meanwhile, outside and above the rooftops, Ace was enjoying the city scene, but at the same time was worried about Zoro's well being. He has no doubts that Crocodile has erased the man's memories of them by this point. And the assassination's on the news were no doubt the swordsman's unwillingly doing. He worried about his brother's well being as well.

He knew that Zoro was a special case, and after knowing the man for the brief time that he was fortunate to have, knew that the swordsman and his brother are very compatible that it could may as well be a marriage. He chuckled at the visual seeing the two in suits on top of the tallest building they can get to and calling out their 'I do's' to the world.

But the thought of the other being missing and in the hands of the man responsible brought him back to reality and how serious this is.

Smoker still had nothing and he could tell that the older man is just as frustrated as he is.

He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "I wish there was a hint to where the guy is…" He said to himself as he got up, maneuvered to the platform with the door, entered through and just walked down a couple flights before going out, looking to make sure no one was around, and went up to an elevator.

He waited until one opened up and he entered and relaxed a bit as he looked at the poster, praising the Guard Droids and what not. Then something hit him like a lightning bolt as he looked at the poster carefully, memorized the address, and headed out of the elevator with a sprint to his step before full out running out of the building and into a subway. 'Maybe there's a way!' He thought.

-XxX-

Back with Luffy, he continued to blindly go through the dark as he could feel that it was getting colder and colder the deeper he went. 'Will I ever get out of here?' He thought as he ran into a wall. "Another wall…" He said as he felt around to find that the wall turned to another direction. "Man, someone really put a lot of work on this." He said to himself as he ran into another wall. "Damnit!" He said as he felt around both sides, only to find that there was no other path. He felt around the wall in front of him and felt something that resembled a handle. "Now we're getting somewhere." He smiled as he used different techniques to get the door to open, only for it to not budge. "Crap! What the hell am I suppose to do now?"

At that point his eyes were suddenly onslaught by a sudden light that was behind him, seeing his shadow and revealing the metal door.

"There you are." Said a woman's voice.

-XxX-

Back with Ace, he managed to sneak into the corporate building where the creator of the Guard Droids resided.

'If it's anyone who knows about the Guard Droids, it would be this guy.' He thought as he found the office and waited for the small meeting to adjourned. 'Yeah, I know Zoro isn't one, but he's gotta know how to search for a missing one and not harm the system behind it.' He carefully entered the room without making a sound and sat on the table, with a childish grin on his face as the man gathered his papers and be all that organized shit before realizing that he has an audience, freaking him out.

"What the hell!"

Ace chuckled as he waved the man off. "Easy old timer! I just want to ask you something."

The old man actually knew the man before him. 'Oh shit! It's the older brother of that kid Crocodile told me about. Has he found out that I'm helping?' He thought as he composed himself. "Oh? Then speak, I'm very busy."

Ace grew serious, which made the other slightly nervous. "I would like to know if there's a way to track a missing Guard Droid without harming any of the hardware or whatever you put in those things."

"Excuse me? If you're asking me this, then you have a Guard Droid then?" He asked, calming down a bit. 'So he doesn't know then…'

Ace scratched his head. "Yes and no…"

The man sighed. "I don't have time for your games, young man. Now if you will excuse me…." He grabbed his belongings and started for the door. 'I'm sorry, but Zoro is the perfect prototype for a new Generation of Guard Droids. Though I don't really wish any ill will on the poor man as well.' He thought as he remembered seeing the green haired man being tied up when he was in his immobile state and thrown unceremoniously into that damp room. He heard from his benefactor that he did remember, for some time, not complete but there. He was told that the sooner he was able to rid of those 'useless' memories, the sooner I would have that deal I needed for the project for the dead patients and give then a certain life and continued service. But now it seems morally wrong and cruel to the person, especially to that one who was only half dead.

"Please sir, you know about these things than I do. And to tell you the truth, someone was able to make a human to a half Guard Droid, or something like that, but he's human. Anyway, it will be easy to find him if we knew a way that wouldn't bug him in anyway." Ace said, looking sincere. "This person means a lot to my brother and his friends. And I would not be doing my job as a brother if I'm not helping him. And the guy is a good guy and deserves than whatever's happening now."

'You and me both…' He thought, remembering the time he made the deal with the man.

He was desperate, willing to go to the underworld to strike a deal. And that's how he got word of Crocodile, the richest corporate manager in the city. He proposed his idea, which he hasn't shown to anyone, thinking that what he's proposing is along the lines of Frankenstein's monster. But the man was intrigued with the idea and so started off with rodents, then dogs, then pigs. He was even able to keep a tiger and shark alive with this technology for nearly a year before he wanted to take the ultimate step: use this technology on a human.

He didn't care what kind of unfortunate person he would work with, as long as he isn't fully dead by the time they arrive with him. When he got a look at the subject, he protested about the holes, but those were easily covered and renewed thanks to his shark experiment. But because there was trauma in the body due to the bullets, he had to place him into a students' project tube for the synthetic Guard Droids.

It was all according to plan, but he was an hour late to retrieve his project before being discovered. For days and weeks he wondered what had become of his project until Crocodile told him of the news of spotting the subject.

At first he was thrilled to know he had been successful. At long last his dream of a Guard Droid from actual humans was coming to reality.

That was of course until Crocodile set out to bring the subject back.

It was one thing to work on a half dead body, where the consciousness is hardly there and resembled a broken doll. But when they brought him in, healthy and aware, he started to feel guilt in what he was doing, but he had to follow Crocodile's orders.

He had no idea why this particular human being, being an assassin of all things, until the killings started. It wasn't just Crocodile's competitors, but his as well. He didn't wish their deaths though, no… He has seen those men with their families, they were innocent, just doing what they usually do.

And what is he doing?

Lying to his family about the whole project, knowingly that people were dying by the handled blade of the man he brought back to life, but worse of all, is that he is helping destroy the man's second, and greatest, chance of life.

Seeing the man in the empty room now only made his guilt worse than it already is. The man who came to him, the one who is the soul reason why this was happening for profit and recognition, to help him find the man who is obviously beloved by the swordsman was forced to part from.

He didn't wish for this… Not like this… He truly is Frankenstein...

"Come back here tomorrow… I'll see if there's a way to not only search without harming the other, but maybe put a lock on any command to be used against him…"

"Really? That's great!" Ace said, ecstatic that he might get somewhere now. "You have no idea how much this means to all of us."

"Don't get your hopes up too high… I don't know about this not-Guard Droid of yours."

"Oh right. He might not be in your system… legally anyway."

He nodded. "I'll see what I can do…"

"Thank you sir." Ace said as the man shooed him and he left the man be, smiling to himself at the good news he had in a long time.

The man stood in the room and sighed. 'You have really fucked up this time…' He thought, knowing that tomorrow he would have to make the man forget for good. And the chip he placed into that man's head will no doubt be changed to something that only Crocodile will know. He would have to risk everything if it truly came to that.

'I'm a horrible human being… I don't deserve this… What the hell was I thinking?' He went to his car and rubbed his eyes. 'Tomorrow I'll be erasing that man's best memories of his life, which is all of it, leaving only the experience of an assassin in place.' He drove out of the garage and out onto the street. 'But if I can get the codes from Crocodile and give them to him so the others would know what to do if they ever do meet…' He sighed as he stopped at a stop light. 'But knowing Crocodile, he'll suspect something… And he will look into it and find out about that meeting. He always finds a way to get the knowledge that he needs in order to be the top.'

He arrived home to see his wife, who had been staying up late waiting for him and now realized just how much he was hurting her all this time in his quest for his goal to come to life.

'Was any of it worth it? To destroy one's life twice? To hurt the one who silently supports me with no knowledge of the sin I've caused? To be in the mercy of a dangerous man?' He thought as he went up to his wife and embraced her, finding some comfort as she hugged back. 'Dear Lord, forgive me for being so blind. If I'm not forgiven, at least give that man a chance at happiness once again.'

-XxX-

Back with Luffy, he sighed as he recognized the voice. "Robin! Damnit! Don't scare me like that!"

The woman giggled as she held her flashlight away from the other's face so they could see each other. "I'm sorry Luffy, but I've gotten worried and the tracker led me here. Though I must say the hidden switch was a bit of a find for me. Is that why you were such in deep thought earlier?"

"Yeah." He said as he looked at the door. "I thought I might find some clue, but I'm still at a dead end."

She giggled as she handed him the flashlight as she went up to the door, taking a bobby pin out of her hair, and started to work with the lock there. In about two minutes, she was able to open the lock and both pushed the door to open.

"What's in here?" He asked as he shined the light around, only to find a dry office of some sort.

Robin entered and looked around, making quick work of the papers and such from her experience as a Runner. She opened drawers and found files with their names on it. "I think we may have found Crocodile's hidden office." She said as she held up a very handled folder with Luffy's name on it. "It seems he's looking into you the most."

"Why?"

"Being Swordman-san's partner definitely." She said as she looked through, surprised on how much there was in the file.

"What's wrong Robin?"

"He's been keeping an eye on you, that's for sure."

"Creepy." He said.

Robin nodded in agreement before finding something in the file that wasn't information, but a note. "Looks like he intends to have a meeting with you…"

"A meeting?"

She nodded. "No doubt to use Zoro against you." She said as she found a folder that was also handled a lot and looked through, only to gasp.

"What is it?"

"They're going to erase Zoro's memory for good…"

"When?" He asked, slightly panicked.

"Early tomorrow…"

"No…" He said as Robin frantically looked for any hint of the whereabouts, but turned up with nothing.

"Luffy… I'm so sorry…" She said, on the verge of crying due to failing, yet again to find the man they deeply regard as their own.

Luffy didn't say anything as Nami came on in their ear pieces and told them what Ace had found out, which they told her their grave news. 'Zoro…' He thought as he remembered everything from meeting the man to the last time he saw him. He had a determined look on his face. 'I will find you! Even if you forgotten me, I'll make you remember! Even if you're set out to kill me, I will fight to live! And even if you become something that isn't the real you, I will do everything in my power to get you back!'

-XxX-

That morning, Zoro was strapped down on a gurney, receiving a shot to make him completely numb throughout the process. His head shaved and a helmet placed over.

'This is it then…' He thought as he wished he had something, a certain hope that he can remember the other. 'I'll be-' He wasn't able to complete that when he felt the painful shocks going through him, images of his life there one second and gone the next.

It only took half a minute after two days of careful planning, but Crocodile smiled at the success of it all. The man not so much, but held a face of indifference while he was crying inside.

It has been done.


	30. Bad News, Worse News

Chapter 30: Bad News, Worse News

#~+~#

Later that day of bleaching Zoro's memory, Ace waited until he got the man he talked to yesterday alone. He wanted to let the man know the change and what he can do about it. He was desperate at this point.

When Luffy and Robin returned last night when they found out about it, everyone knew that they have failed to save their own from the worst case scenario. With no leads of a location or spotting of the man, they were rendered helpless, a feeling the group were not comfortable with. But he was really worried about his brother. His carefree, happy little brother is now torn between being determined and hopeful to being a torn up mess of the idea that he had failed his partner once again.

He just wanted to know if it was still possible to find him, still possible to at least know where to find their nakama and face him. At least get him away from Crocodile for good.

When he saw the man alone, he made his appearance and went up to the man. "Hey there."

"I don't have the codes you're looking for."

"That's not what I'm here for." He said, panic and sorrow laced in his voice as he explained what he learned from his brother and Robin. "I don't care about the codes to stop him, because knowing the bastard he must've found a way to change them. But if you can find out where he is, then we'll deal the son of a bitch ourselves." He said heatedly.

The man knew what the other is saying, and he knew the other only wanted what was best. He would gladly tell this young man where they're being kept and everything… But Crocodile found out after all, just as he feared, but didn't expect it to be so soon.

_"Get rid of him… or it will be your wife who pays the price."_

He was in deep now. He made it to the point of no return. "Come by later this evening… I may find what you need then."

"Thank you sir." Ace said with so much hope towards the man that he didn't realize the guilt that the older man has hidden deep within his heart.

-XxX-

Meanwhile, Zoro was still out from the crucial operation and was attached with different tubes and a mask over his face. A bandage was wrapped around his head with a present small red dot was seen on the off white.

Crocodile wasn't far from the man as he held the dried bloody chip that was once installed in the man, but now it was useless and crushed it between his fingers. He felt a great sense of satisfaction of the whole thing.

'The downside is that he can't be useful for a year, but after some treatment and excess training to get him used to the whole thing, he will be my useful deadly doll of death.' He thought, the thought of his empire getting him close to madness. 'I maybe a couple years behind due to this, but that won't be a problem…'

-XxX-

Luffy and everyone in the group decided to not take any jobs for a week, deciding that they should have a time to mourn for their lost friend, now that they're sure that every last bit of memory of them that he might've had are now nothing.

"What do we do?" Chopper boldly asked in a quiet voice. He liked the man, seeing him like a great comfort when he gets a bit upset.

"What else is there to do? The Marimo we know is gone!" Sanji spat. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he at a mutual respect for the man, finding that having arguments with him have a great stress relief factor afterwards.

"But he isn't dead." Usopp argued. He liked the guy as well for the same reason as Chopper.

"Physically he isn't." Robin said. "But any memory of us is gone… So it's like the death of the one we know before." She respected the man as well, and she thought it was adorable when he and their captain are together. But now it was a bitter sweet memory.

Vivi started to cry as Nami wrapped her arms around her. Both women respected the man for taking care of their captain and just being an anchor when things got a little out of hand even for them.

Franky was bawling and wasn't even going to deny it. He liked the guy just because Zoro was himself and only himself.

Brooke joined in, but without the tears, for the same reason.

Luffy was silent through the whole thing as well as Ace. Luffy knew that he can't get the Zoro he knew back, but he was determined to get him back. Zoro is the only man he wants, needs, as his partner. He will not choose anyone else.

"Luffy? What will you do?" Robin asked as Luffy looked up seriously.

"I rather die than replace Zoro."

"But why!" Nami said. "He won't be the same!"

"I know." He said calmly, taking aback the girl. "I know that he won't be the Zoro I brought in that day. I know he won't remember any of us even if I forced him to. I know that, due to the fact that Crocodile still has him under his control, that I will die if I face him." There was a thick atmosphere when he paused and slowly got up to face everyone seriously in the eye. "But I will not replace him, knowing that he's physically among us. I rather fight to gain him back than replace him and try to forget what it was like."

Everyone agreed silently. Neither of them lost their partners and would like to keep it that way, but when they hear about another Runner losing his or her partner, they hear that the new partners always have a hard time due to the huge shoes they have to fill. And other times the new partners will have to face the partner's fears and demands that would avoid them from being too reckless that caused their predecessors to their fate.

Luffy knew that trying to gain back Zoro at this point was almost near impossible. And the fact that he has still no idea where they were keeping the other was another frustration in itself, but he wasn't going to give up just yet.

Ace, impressed by the maturity of his little brother, thought if the information from the man would even be worth all this trouble. Even if they did find Zoro, they would have a hard time convincing the man to join them if Crocodile has already brain washed him. And then there's Crocodile himself. The man has power and money with his public figure and wouldn't bash an eyelash to keep them alive. The man definitely needs to be taken out before Zoro can be used like before.

-XxX-

That night, when everyone was asleep, he headed back to the office that the man had said would find the information he needs to find Zoro. Once there, he found a note that had directions to where he would meet the man.

He followed the address to a construction yard that was within weeks of completing a new building. He was on the roof top where he saw the man there. He went up, letting out his greeting to let the other know he's there and saw the man turn, only to stop to see the gun in the man's hand.

"What's going on?" He asked, not believing he was seeing.

"I'm sorry… I never wanted to cause you, your brother, or the rest of your team any pain because of my blind ideals."

"What are y-" He was about to say when he started to think of the possibility. "You… You're the one who…"

"Yes… Creating a Guard Droid from unused human corpses to make them more human was my idea. I'm not proud of it, seeing that the pain it has caused at this point. But I'm also in the bind here, and I'm sorry, but I have to get rid of you."

"Why would you want to create something like that?"

"Like I said, I was blind and maybe have a god complex when the idea came around. But now I see I'm just as much a failure as Frankenstein and his monster creation. Crocodile already knows that I've talked to you, and so I have the unfavorable honor to rid of you." He shot first the other's knee, making the man fall and unable to move. "I honestly don't want to do this, but my wife's life is on the line… And my life is too valuable to be rid of so easily even if I want to. Believe me, I wanted to rid myself after finding out how much I ruined your friend's life. But I'm the only one who can do the things that make him living a breathing…" He aimed the gun at the other's head. "I don't expect you to forgive me, sir, but if I don't do this, Crocodile will kill your brother and everyone of your friends."

"He's just going to do that anyway, but he'll use Zoro to do so!" Ace shouted, holding onto his shot knee in vain.

The man bowed his head as his hand started to tremble. "Would you rather have a man with evil intent kill them, or a man who has no idea why he was ordered to kill do the job instead?"

"Neither!" He said as the man lowered the barrel from his head to his chest.

"I've never killed a person in my life…" He said. "And you trusted me so highly… Just like my wife…"

Ace felt sorry for the man, he honestly did. 'Crocodile truly is a dangerous man to deal with…' He thought with a sigh. He didn't want to die, but this man is the one who created Zoro how his is now, and possibly the only man to keep the man alive.

"Mind if I pray?"

"Not like you got a choice…" Ace said, admitting to letting the man take his life. "You're ordered to kill me, and you shot my knee to the point where I can't use it anymore. You may as well have crippled me for life now."

The man didn't respond to that as he started to pray in a strange, Latin sounding language before pulling the trigger five times to the man's chest, watching the life disappear in the man's eyes as he fell. He cried as Crocodile came out from the shadows.

"Good work, to be honest I didn't think you would be able to go through with it."

"Just leave my wife alone…"

"I'm a man of my word." Crocodile said with a heartless grin as he grabbed the dead body of the man and threw the corpse off the building.

"What the hell was that for!"

"He's a Runner…" Crocodile said. "Now come along! Before the cops come by this place." He said as he took the steps down.

The man stood there, the empty gun in his hand and the blood spot where the man died on. He followed reluctantly, his burdens heavier than they were before. 'Oh Lord… What have I become?' He thought, feeling the chains of guilt and regret weighing on his already tired soul.

-XxX-

When news of Ace's death reached to the group, time stood still and all life seemed to suck out from them to function normally.

Sanji wasn't able to cook anything, nor was anyone hungry to begin with.

Nami and Vivi, held each other's hands as their eyes were red from too spent up tears.

Chopper and Usopp were holding one another, silently sniffing.

Franky and Brook were deadly silent as they avoided any sort of eye contact.

Robin has her arms around Luffy, who, like Nami and Vivi, has spent up all his tears from crying and was now sobbing. She silently prayed for a kind of hope in all of this tragedy, but even she's starting to feel that it was hopeless to find the light in all of this.

Luffy, on the other hand, though emotionally shaken by the news of his brother's death, only strengthened his loathe of Crocodile and determination of getting back Zoro.

* * *

Don't sue/shot/kill me for this. I intend to make this a happy ending kind of fic, but like I mentioned a few chapters back that I had to make a difficult choice when doing these last couple of chapters. Anyway, I hope you guys like it and I did cry when I was doing this chapter.


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